ticket of leave

or tick·et-of-leave

noun, plural tickets of leave. British.

(formerly) a permit allowing a convict to leave prison, under certain restrictions, and go to work before having served a full term, somewhat similar to a certificate of parole.

Origin of ticket of leave

First recorded in 1725–35

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for ticket of leave

Historical Examples of ticket of leave

The fellow is a ticket-of-leave man, and as likely as not in league with these scoundrels.
A Final Reckoning
G. A. Henty
In the foregoing "Ticket-of-leave" the word Licence is spelt with an s.
Six Years in the Prisons of England
A Merchant - Anonymous
The ticket-of-leave man came in to ask if we could give him a job.
Rebel women
Evelyn Sharp
One was a convict on ticket-of-leave, the other a deserter from a regiment in England.
Mysteries of Police and Crime
Arthur Griffiths
He will get a ticket-of-leave almost immediately on landing.
It Is Never Too Late to Mend
Charles Reade

British Dictionary definitions for ticket of leave

ticket of leave

noun

(formerly in Britain) a permit allowing a convict (ticket-of-leave man) to leave prison, after serving only part of his sentence, with certain restrictions placed on him

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012