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permission

American  
[per-mish-uhn] / pərˈmɪʃ ən /

noun

  1. authorization granted to do something; formal consent.

    to ask permission to leave the room.
    Synonyms:
    sanction, leave
    Antonyms:
    refusal, restraint

  2. the act of permitting.

permission British  
/ pəˈmɪʃən /

noun

  1. authorization to do something

"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 Word Forms

  • nonpermission noun
  • permissioned adjective
  • permissory adjective
  • self-permission noun

Etymology

Origin of permission

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin permissiōn-, stem of permissiō “a yielding, giving leave,” from permiss(us) “given leave” (past participle of permittere “to let go through, give leave”; permit 1 ) + -iō -ion

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.