Definition of permissive
1 archaic : granted on sufferance : tolerated
2a : granting or tending to grant permission : tolerantb : deficient in firmness or control : indulgent, lax
3 : allowing discretion : optional reduced the permissive retirement age from 65 to 62
4 : supporting growth or genetic replication (as of a virus) permissive host cells
permissively
adverbpermissiveness
nounFrom the M-W Editors
Examples of permissive in a Sentence
Some states have more permissive laws than others.
Recent Examples of permissive from the Web
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Mayor Carlos Gimenez recently formed a panel to study pockets of land just outside the official Urban Development Boundary, the line that forms the western and southern frontiers between permissive building rules and low-growth restrictions.
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According to the company’s numbers, the percentage of projects using the GPL dropped from 70 percent in June 2008 to about 57 percent today, while the Apache and the MIT — another permissive license — have risen to 5 and 11 percent respectively.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'permissive'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of permissive
Middle English permyssyf, from Middle French permissif, from Latin permissus
First Known Use: 15th century
PERMISSIVE Defined for English Language Learners
permissive
playDefinition of permissive for English Language Learners
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: giving people a lot of freedom or too much freedom to do what they want to do
Medical Dictionary
permissive
playMedical Definition of permissive
: supporting growth or genetic replication (as of a virus) permissive temperatures permissive monkey cells
Law Dictionary
permissive
Legal Definition of permissive
1 : based on or having permission permissive occupancy a permissive user of the vehicle
2 : granting permission or discretion (as to the court) a permissive statute
3 : not compulsory: as a : allowed or made under a standard, rule, or provision that permits discretion or an option — see also permissive intervention at intervention, permissive presumption at presumption — compare compulsory b : allowed under modern rules of civil procedure although not arising from the same transaction or occurrence as the one at issue in the original claim a permissive counterclaim — see also permissive joinder at joinder
permissively
adverbpermissiveness
nounLearn More about permissive
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See words that rhyme with permissive Spanish Central: Translation of permissive Nglish: Translation of permissive for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of permissive for Arabic speakers
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