warrant

[ wawr-uhnt, wor- ]

/ ˈwɔr ənt, ˈwɒr- /

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See synonyms for: warrant / warranted / warranting / warrants on Thesaurus.com

noun

authorization, sanction, or justification.

something that serves to give reliable or formal assurance of something; guarantee, pledge, or security.

something considered as having the force of a guarantee or as being positive assurance of a thing: The cavalry and artillery were considered sure warrants of success.

a writing or document certifying or authorizing something, as a receipt, license, or commission.

Law. an instrument, issued by a magistrate, authorizing an officer to make an arrest, seize property, make a search, or carry a judgment into execution.

the certificate of authority or appointment issued to an officer of the armed forces below the rank of a commissioned officer.

a warehouse receipt.

a written authorization for the payment or receipt of money: a treasury warrant.

verb (used with object)

to give authority to; authorize.

to give reason or sanction for; account for: The circumstances warrant such measures.

to give one's word for; vouch for (often used with a clause to emphasize something asserted): I'll warrant he did!

to give a formal assurance, or a guarantee or promise, to or for; guarantee: to warrant someone honorable treatment; to warrant payment; to warrant safe delivery.

to guarantee the quantity, quality, and other representations of (an article, product, etc.), as to a purchaser.

to guarantee or secure title to (the purchaser of goods); assure indemnification against loss to.

Law. to guarantee title of an estate or other granted property (to a grantee).

OTHER WORDS FOR warrant

2 warranty, surety.

4 permit, voucher, writ, order, chit.

10 justify, uphold, validate, vindicate.

11 guarantee, attest, swear.

See synonyms for warrant on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of warrant

First recorded in 1175–1225; (noun) Middle English warant, from Anglo-French; Old French guarant, from Germanic; compare Middle Low German warend, warent “warranty,” noun use of present participle of waren “to warrant”; (verb) Middle English, from Anglo-French warantir; Old French g(u)arantir, derivative of guarant; see guaranty

OTHER WORDS FROM warrant

war·rant·less, adjectivepre·war·rant, noun, verb (used with object)re·war·rant, verb (used with object)self-war·rant·ing, adjective

Words nearby warrant

warplane, war powers, War Production Board, warp speed, warpwise, warrant, warrantable, warranted, warrantee, warrant officer, Warrant of Fitness

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use warrant in a sentence

Among the sort of policing that fell away, the former officer said, was officers’ routine sweeps of areas where drug users congregated, to check their names for outstanding warrants, which would often net suspects in local burglaries.
What Can Mayors Do When the Police Stop Doing Their Jobs?|by Alec MacGillis|September 3, 2020|ProPublica
At least a dozen times, the report states, judges issued bench warrants for her arrest for violating the terms of her release requiring her to enter various treatment programs.
D.C. study documents ‘Life and Death’ of trans woman Alice Carter|Lou Chibbaro Jr.|September 2, 2020|Washington Blade
Housing authority officials didn’t cancel the eviction warrant until a month later.
She Was Sued Over Rent She Didn’t Owe. It Took Seven Court Dates to Prove She Was Right.|by Danielle Ohl, Capital Gazette, and Talia Buford and Beena Raghavendran, ProPublica|August 25, 2020|ProPublica
Whether new team members or veteran managers, we assume we have neither the capacity nor the warrant to reinvent how our organizations work.
How to break free of bureaucracy in the workplace|Michele Zanini|August 17, 2020|Quartz

The USA Freedom Reauthorization Act grants federal authorities the ability to collect “tangible things” related to national security investigations without a warrant.
Congressional Dems: New Surveillance Bill Strikes Right Balance|Jesse Marx|June 22, 2020|Voice of San Diego
Antoine himself had recently been arrested on a six-year-old warrant for a dime bag of weed.
Ground Zero of the NYPD Slowdown|Batya Ungar-Sargon|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The risks are too high to warrant supporting public marriage proposals.
Public Marriage Proposals Must Die|Tauriq Moosa|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Not enough black films are being made to warrant a piece of the pie.
Ava DuVernay on ‘Selma,’ the Racist Sony Emails, and Making Golden Globes History|Marlow Stern|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Because Wright was a no-show in criminal court to face the loud music and pot bust he already had an outstanding warrant.
The Navy ‘Hero’ Who Pimped an HIV-Positive Teen|M.L. Nestel|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Olga was on guard as always, and categorically refused to open the door unless the police produced a warrant.
How Havel Inspired the Velvet Revolution|Michael Zantovsky|December 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
De Robeck agrees that we don't know enough yet to warrant us in fault-finding or intervention.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
He had no rest until the seals were fixed to parchment, and the warrant of his release appeared in public print.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
He has no authority to warrant the quality of property sold except custom or authority is expressly given to him.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman|Albert Sidney Bolles
The context in Chaucer does not seem to warrant the interpretation given by Tyrwhit.
Notes and Queries, Number 177, March 19, 1853|Various
David had replied, in that short tone of self-sufficiency which conveys so much more than the syllable would seem to warrant.
The Garret and the Garden|R.M. Ballantyne

British Dictionary definitions for warrant

warrant

/ (ˈwɒrənt) /

noun

anything that gives authority for an action or decision; authorization; sanction

a document that certifies or guarantees, such as a receipt for goods stored in a warehouse, a licence, or a commission

law an authorization issued by a magistrate or other official allowing a constable or other officer to search or seize property, arrest a person, or perform some other specified act

(in certain armed services) the official authority for the appointment of warrant officers

a security that functions as a stock option by giving the owner the right to buy ordinary shares in a company at a specified date, often at a specified price

verb (tr)

to guarantee the quality, condition, etc, of (something)

to give authority or power to

to attest to or assure the character, worthiness, etc, of

to guarantee (a purchaser of merchandise) against loss of, damage to, or misrepresentation concerning the merchandise

law to guarantee (the title to an estate or other property)

to declare boldly and confidently

Derived forms of warrant

warrantable, adjectivewarrantability, nounwarrantably, adverbwarranter, noun

warrantless, adjective

Word Origin for warrant

C13: from Anglo-French warrant, variant of Old French guarant, from guarantir to guarantee, of Germanic origin; compare guaranty

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with warrant

warrant

see sign one's own death warrant.

warrant

OTHER WORDS FOR warrant

Origin of warrant

OTHER WORDS FROM warrant

Words nearby warrant

Words related to warrant

How to use warrant in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for warrant

Derived forms of warrant

Word Origin for warrant

Other Idioms and Phrases with warrant