allow

verb

al·low | \ ə-ˈlau̇

allowed; allowing; allows

Definition of allow

transitive verb

1a : permit doesn't allow people to smoke in his home

b : to fail to restrain or prevent allow the dog to roam

2a : to assign as a share or suitable amount (as of time or money) allow an hour for lunch

b : to reckon as a deduction or an addition allow a gallon for leakage

3 : admit, concede must allow that money causes problems in marriage

4a chiefly Southern US and Midland US : to be of the opinion : think

b dialect : say, state

c : to express an opinion —usually used with as how or that

5 chiefly Southern US and Midland US : intend, plan

intransitive verb

1 : to make a possibility : admit —used with of evidence that allows of only one conclusion

2 : to give consideration to circumstances or contingencies —used with for a plan that allows for expansion

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about allow

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Examples of allow in a Sentence

a religion that does not allow divorce They don't allow smoking in this hotel. I want to change my schedule, but my boss won't allow it. My boss wouldn't allow me to change my schedule. They don't allow people to smoke in this hotel. Women were not allowed in the club. The hospital doesn't allow visitors after 8 p.m. Her schedule doesn't allow her any time to run errands. The system allows you to transfer data easily from one computer to another. Occasional gaps allow passage through the mountains.

Recent Examples on the Web

Under the plan, the city’s low-rise zones (LR1, LR2 and LR3) would be redefined to allow more density. — Daniel Beekman, The Seattle Times, "Seattle City Council starts debate on upzones; here’s how neighborhoods across the city would be affected," 8 Jan. 2019 This surrounds components like the urethra and swells in order to allow erections. 2. — Zahra Barnes, SELF, "11 Things Everyone Should Know About Uncircumcised Penises," 29 Dec. 2018 The news comes after Qualcomm won a similar injunction in China that would have banned sales of older models, although Apple has already updated iOS for Chinese users with new animations to allow sales to continue. — Chaim Gartenberg, The Verge, "Apple will pull older iPhones from its German stores after Qualcomm wins partial ban," 20 Dec. 2018 But mortgage lender CMG Financial has a division called HomeFundIt that’s tasked with coming up with creative ways to allow people to save. — Jeff Andrews, Curbed, "Need money for a down payment on a house? There’s an app for that.," 17 Dec. 2018 After all, the law allows for only three casino resort licenses and one slots parlor, all relatively far from each other. — Andrea Bennett, Condé Nast Traveler, "Will New Casinos Bring a "MassVegas" to New England?," 17 Dec. 2018 This same process allowed Qualcomm to announce its discrete X50 5G modem in 2016, well before 3GPP published its final standard. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Qualcomm announces Snapdragon 855 mobile chip as it readies for 5G," 4 Dec. 2018 All this knowledge has definitely allowed me to design product more easily and certainly with an understanding of scale and quality which really helped with the Corbett lighting collections. — Lucia Tonelli, ELLE Decor, "Martyn Lawrence Bullard's Corbett Lighting Collection Is Gorgeously Extravagant," 14 Nov. 2018 Thus, a tweet full of bluster that allowed people to practically taste the chip growing on Gritty’s shoulder could only help pull Gritty into Philly’s good graces. — Todd Vanderwerff, Vox, "Gritty’s evolution from googly-eyed hockey mascot to meme to leftist avatar, explained," 24 Dec. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'allow.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.