empower

verb em·pow·er \ im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r \

|Updated on: 10 Jul 2018

Examples: empower in a Sentence

empowered; empowering; empowers

transitive verb

1 : to give official authority or legal power to

empowered her attorney to act on her behalf

2 : enable 1a

3 : to promote the self-actualization or influence of

women's movement has been inspiring and empowering women
—Ron Hansen

—

empowerment

play \im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r-mənt\ noun

See empower defined for English-language learners

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Examples of empower in a Sentence

seeking changes in the workplace that will empower women
the federal agency empowered to collect taxes

Recent Examples of empower from the Web

The regulatory reforms currently under consideration, such as empowering the SEC to block buybacks, might curb these abuses even more.

— jesse m. fried and, WSJ, "The Real Problem With Stock Buybacks," 6 July 2018
Yet when aboriginal leaders suggested that any amendment to the constitution should empower, rather than simply nod at aboriginals, the government demurred.

— The Economist, "Australia’s states offer to make treaties with aboriginals," 5 July 2018
If recognized early by genetic testing, knowing that your genes predispose you to developing certain cancers can be incredibly empowering.

— dr. lisa abaid, latimes.com, "Genetic screening can inform women of their breast and ovarian cancer risks," 5 July 2018
This story felt like a really important one to tell because here is this amazing group of women who have come together to not only empower each other through self-defense training, but allied their community.

— National Geographic, "Meet the 'Kickboxing Grannies' of Kenya's Most Dangerous Slum," 28 June 2018
Assemblyman Ed Chau, D-Arcadia (Los Angeles County), one of the authors of the bill, said the changes will empower consumers by putting them in control of how their personal information is being used.

— melody gutierrez, SFChronicle.com, "California lawmakers approve internet privacy bill, send it to Jerry Brown," 28 June 2018
In the Muslim-ban case, Trump v. Hawaii, Trump set out to ban Muslim families, and the highest level of our judiciary just allowed it to happen, empowering this president and future administrations to discriminate on the basis of religion.

— dawud walid, The Root, "Muslim Travel Ban? There Has Never Been an America Without Islam or Muslims," 27 June 2018
The current generation of Saudis has grown up in a time when previous rulers empowered clerics who have taught a rigidly pious stream of Islam known as Wahhabism, which is not practiced widely in other Arab or Islamic countries.

— margaret coker, New York Times, "Saudi Women Can Now Drive. Overcoming Beliefs on Gender Will Be Harder.," 24 June 2018
For athletes like Gonzales, the Summer Games can be a empowering space.

— adesuwa agbonile, sacbee, "Built on volunteer efforts, Special Olympics bring smiles and empowerment to UC Davis," 22 June 2018

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