permit
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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permits,
present (3rd person singular)
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permitted,
past participle, past
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permitting
present participle
verb (used without object)
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permits,
present (3rd person singular)
-
permitted,
past participle, past
-
permitting
present participle
-
to grant permission; allow liberty to do something.
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to afford opportunity or possibility.
Write when time permits.
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to allow or admit (usually followed byof ).
statements that permit of no denial.
noun
verb
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(tr) to grant permission to do something
you are permitted to smoke
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(tr) to consent to or tolerate
she will not permit him to come
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to allow the possibility (of)
the passage permits of two interpretations
his work permits him to relax nowadays
noun
-
an official certificate or document granting authorization; licence
-
permission, esp written permission
Usage
What are other ways to say permit?
To permit is to allow someone to do something. How is permit different from allow and let? Learn more on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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permitsimple
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permitssimple
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have permittedperfect
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has permittedperfect
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am permittingprogressive
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are permittingprogressive
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is permittingprogressive
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have been permittingperfect progressive
-
has been permittingperfect progressive
Past
-
permittedsimple
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had permittedperfect
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was permittingprogressive
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were permittingprogressive
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had been permittingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of permit1
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Latin permittere “to let go through, give leave,” equivalent to per- per- + mittere “to let or make (someone) go”; see admit, commit, etc.
Origin of permit2
An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; apparently by folk etymology from Spanish palometa palometa
Explanation
Permit means to allow. When you permit your brother to come into your room, you let him in. (You can always kick him back out if he messes with your stuff.) To permit means to let someone do something. It comes from the Latin permittere which means "give up, allow to pass through." You might feel like you "gave up" when you permitted your brother to enter your room. As a noun, a permit is a document that lets you do something — like when you get a driver's permit to learn to drive, or a gun permit to carry a gun, or even a construction permit to build an addition to your house.
Vocabulary lists containing permit
Send a Message: Mit and Miss
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This Week in Words: January 20 - 26, 2018
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Lineage has since filed for a permit to rebuild the Boyle Heights warehouse, which was met with fierce backlash from the community and city officials.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Project opponents, including a tribal council and environmental groups, sued last year over the venture’s Clean Water Act permit, citing the potential effect on belugas, among other environmental concerns.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
The plant got air pollution permits in January, Amazon received construction permits last week, and satellite imagery confirmed clearing had begun at the site named in the plant's air permit records.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
The 18-year-old has impressed during pre-season, however, Iraola will not be able to use him this year as he does not yet qualify for a UK work permit.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
The legal guidelines that might permit a clear answer to that question had not yet congealed.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
At one time, according to the police, he had possessed permits for nine guns, but in recent years had reduced that to just one.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
“While Waymo is receiving its permits today, expansion will be gradual and guided by its safety framework,” said Waymo spokesperson Sandy Karp.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
But the bill names loyalty programs both among the rewards it permits and among those it forbids.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Activities are subject to specific permits, and Greenland Energy still hopes to obtain full approval to begin drilling soon in order to determine the quality of potential deposits.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
Maine in 1996 received 82,000 applications for just 1,500 permits.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
The letter noted that Daniels’ contract permitted LSU to use his name, image and likeness for only 180 days beyond his final game in college.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
"We have not been informed of the charges against them or permitted to see them," Guterres' spokesman Farhan Haq said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
Calls will only be permitted if they relate to a contract a person has already entered into or the company has obtained prior consent to be contacted for marketing.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
"We lack essential supplies because importing beekeeping equipment from the other side is not permitted," Al-Dabba told AFP, saying he had approached external organisations and ministries in Gaza and the occupied West Bank for help.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
“The Swanburne letters are kept locked in a safe. Even I cannot access them. Only qualified persons are permitted to request access, which is granted rarely, and only with proper permission.”
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
Supply-chain backlogs, permitting fights and availability of power supplies are among the issues that have caused the construction of data centers to fall behind targeted timelines this year.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
The reason: A planned move to Santa Clarita has run into “unforeseen permitting and production challenges.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
The Myanmar government could "gain a lot from ASEAN" by permitting access to Suu Kyi, said researcher Morgan Michaels of the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026
Many towns and cities help older homeowners stay in their homes by permitting them to defer their taxes until they sell their homes or pass away.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
Technological advance required the freest possible pursuit of knowledge, so Holland became the leading publisher and bookseller in Europe, translating works written in other languages and permitting the publication of works proscribed elsewhere.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
