sanction
pronunciation
How to pronounce sanction in British English:
UK [ˈsæŋkʃn]
How to pronounce sanction in American English:
US [ˈsæŋkʃn]
-
- Noun:
- formal and explicit approval
- a mechanism of social control for enforcing a society's standards
- official permission or approval
- the act of final authorization
-
- Verb:
- give sanction to
- give authority or permission to
- give religious sanction to, such as through on oath
Word Origin
- sanction (n.)
- early 15c., "confirmation or enactment of a law," from Latin sanctionem (nominative sanctio) "act of decreeing or ordaining," also "decree, ordinance," noun of action from past participle stem of sancire "to decree, confirm, ratify, make sacred" (see saint (n.)). Originally especially of ecclesiastical decrees.
- sanction (v.)
- 1778, "confirm by sanction, make valid or binding;" 1797 as "to permit authoritatively;" from sanction (n.). Seemingly contradictory meaning "impose a penalty on" is from 1956 but is rooted in an old legalistic sense of the noun. Related: Sanctioned; sanctioning.
Antonym
Example
- 1. What kind of evidence would be used to sanction users ?
- 2. So why not apply a more proportionate sanction ?
- 3. In some ways , this was a classic mid-term sanction .
- 4. This sanction strikes at the heart of the web of corruption around putin .
- 5. Clinton says its sanction authorities will remain in place as an insurance policy .