Definition Definition

Allow - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'Allow' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Allow [ v. i.]
- To admit; to concede; to make allowance or abatement.
2 . Allow [ v. t.]
- To praise; to approve of; hence, to sanction.
- To like; to be suited or pleased with.
- To sanction; to invest; to intrust.
- To grant, give, admit, accord, afford, or yield; to let one have; as, to allow a servant his liberty; to allow a free passage; to allow one day for rest.
- To own or acknowledge; to accept as true; to concede; to accede to an opinion; as, to allow a right; to allow a claim; to allow the truth of a proposition.
- To grant (something) as a deduction or an addition; esp. to abate or deduct; as, to allow a sum for leakage.
- To grant license to; to permit; to consent to; as, to allow a son to be absent.

Meaning of 'Allow' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . allow [ v]
Meaning (1):
- make a possibility or provide opportunity for; permit to be attainable or cause to remain
Example in sentence:
  • allow for mistakes;
  • leave lots of time for the trip;
  • The evidence allows only one conclusion;
  • This leaves no room for improvement;
  • This procedure provides for lots of leeway
Meaning (2):
- allow the presence of or allow (an activity) without opposing or prohibiting
Example in sentence:
  • Children are not permitted beyond this point;
  • We cannot tolerate smoking in the hospital;
  • We don't allow dogs here
Meaning (3):
- allow the other (baseball) team to score
Example in sentence:
  • give up a run
Meaning (4):
- let have
Example in sentence:
  • grant permission;
  • Mandela was allowed few visitors in prison
Meaning (5):
- allow or plan for a certain possibility; concede the truth or validity of something
Example in sentence:
  • I allow for this possibility;
  • The seamstress planned for 5% shrinkage after the first wash
Meaning (6):
- consent to, give permission
Example in sentence:
  • I cannot allow you to see your exam;
  • I won't let the police search her basement;
  • She permitted her son to visit her estranged husband
Meaning (7):
- give or assign a resource to a particular person or cause
Example in sentence:
  • I will earmark this money for your research;
  • She sets aside time for meditation every day
Meaning (8):
- grant as a discount or in exchange
Example in sentence:
  • The camera store owner allowed me $50 on my old camera
Meaning (9):
- make it possible through a specific action or lack of action for something to happen
Example in sentence:
  • This permits the water to rush in;
  • This sealed door won't allow the water come into the basement;
  • This will permit the rain to run off
Meaning (10):
- afford possibility
Example in sentence:
  • This problem admits of no solution;
  • This short story allows of several different interpretations