blank check

noun

Updated on: 31 Mar 2018

Definition of blank check

1 : a signed check with the amount unspecified

2 : complete freedom of action or control : carte blanche

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Recent Examples of blank check from the Web

Police found two large expanding portfolios containing hundreds of blank check forms in Blalock's car, according to court records.

— evan macdonald, cleveland.com, "Georgia man recruited homeless men for fraudulent check-cashing scheme, Fairview Park police say," 23 Mar. 2018
The Browns have more than $100 million in cap space and could place a blank check in front of Cousins and tell him to name the price.

— andrew beaton, WSJ, "The Quarterback Whose Decision Will Upend the NFL," 9 Mar. 2018
Casados said the clause allowing the company to raise rates with 30 day's notice is not a blank check from the city to Waste Management.

— jaimy jones, Houston Chronicle, "Pasadena created 35 public works jobs in case talks with Waste Management break down," 1 Mar. 2018
Theft, Sandhurst Drive: Someone stole a blank check from a car parked in a driveway, forged the victim's signature and cashed the check for $600.

— bob sandrick, cleveland.com, "Cell phone stolen from house; drunk driver flips Ford Ranger on Ohio 237: Brook Park police blotter," 22 Feb. 2018
Annexation to Los Angeles looked to her like Beverly Hills would be signing a blank check.

— nancie clare, Los Angeles Magazine, "How the World’s First Movie Stars Made Sure Beverly Hills Didn’t Become Part of L.A.," 20 Feb. 2018
Perhaps most maddening is that all this is happening while Trump sells billions of dollars worth of arms to the Saudis, effectively giving the original underwriters of Salafism and jihadism a blank check.

— omer aziz, New Republic, "My President Was an Islamophobe," 22 Dec. 2017
But until a way is found to limit the exposure of individual banks to their own governments’ bonds—and to restructure government debts in an orderly way—these common backstops risk becoming blank checks.

— simon nixon, WSJ, "Beefed-Up Eurozone Meets Waning Interest in Capitals," 13 Dec. 2017
Many conservatives convinced themselves that their support for nominee Trump could be rewarded with a blank check.

— philip elliott, Time, "President Trump's Biggest Enemy on Tax Reform: Himself," 13 Oct. 2017

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

First Known Use of blank check

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BLANK CHECK Defined for English Language Learners

blank check

noun

Definition of blank check for English Language Learners

: a signed check that does not have the amount of money written on it yet
: complete control or freedom

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See words that rhyme with blank check Spanish Central: Translation of blank check

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