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ticket of leave

or tick·et-of-leave

noun, plural tickets of leave. British.
  1. (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.
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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

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • He will get a ticket-of-leave almost immediately on landing.

British Dictionary definitions for ticket of leave

ticket of leave

noun
  1. (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
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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