remit

1 of 2

verb

re·​mit ri-ˈmit How to pronounce remit (audio)
remitted; remitting

transitive verb

1
a
: to lay aside (a mood or disposition) partly or wholly
b
: to desist from (an activity)
c
: to let (attention or diligence) slacken : relax
2
a
: to release from the guilt or penalty of
remit sins
b
: to refrain from exacting
remit a tax
c
: to cancel or refrain from inflicting
remit the penalty
d
: to give relief from (suffering)
3
: to submit or refer for consideration, judgment, decision, or action
specifically : remand
4
: to restore or consign to a former status or condition
5
6
: to send (money) to a person or place especially in payment of a demand, account, or draft

intransitive verb

1
a
: to abate in force or intensity : moderate
b
: to abate symptoms (as of a disease) for a period
2
: to send money (as in payment)
remitment noun
remittable adjective
remitter noun

remit

2 of 2

noun

re·​mit ri-ˈmit How to pronounce remit (audio)
ˈrē-ˌmit
1
British : an area of responsibility or authority
usually singular
The problem was outside/beyond our remit.
The BBC simply no longer sees producing Shakespeare as part of its remit as a public service television broadcaster.John Morrison
2
: an act of remitting
3
: something remitted to another person or authority

Examples of remit in a Sentence

Verb A patient who has mild flare-ups in the skin and joints twice a year may one day awaken with kidney failure or paralysis that, one month later, mysteriously remits. Elizabeth Rosenthal, New York Times Book Review, 19 Nov. 1989
And he was, therefore, as little surprised as a man could be, to find himself awakened at the small inn to which he had been remitted until morning, in the middle of the night. Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities, 1859
I was brought in guilty and sentenced to die; but that the judges, having been made sensible of the hardship of my circumstances, had obtained leave to remit the sentence upon my consenting to be transported. Daniel Defoe, Moll Flanders, 1722
Please remit $1,000 upon receipt of this letter. Payment can be remitted by check. The governor remitted the remainder of her life sentence. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
For more than 100 years, our central-banking system has made a profit and reliably remitted funds to the U.S. Treasury. WSJ, 31 Aug. 2023 Party leaders explicitly targeted a small set of companies that regularly report massive, multibillion dollar profits to shareholders yet remit little to the government each year. Tony Romm, Washington Post, 14 Aug. 2023 California’s gratuity law requires that tips be remitted in full to non-managerial service staff. Cindy Carcamo, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2023 The number of licensed hunters and anglers in Oklahoma, which is used to calculate federal funds for wildlife conservation, has been reduced because many Native Americans have chosen to obtain licenses from the tribes, which no longer have an agreement to remit funds to the state. Sean Murphy, BostonGlobe.com, 22 July 2023 Because so many dollars flow through the international economy, traders pay the lowest fees to borrow, convert, remit, and otherwise transact in that currency. Andrew J. Nathan, Foreign Affairs, 28 Feb. 2023 Under Claman’s bill, Turo would impose the 10% vehicle-rental tax on the renter at the point of sale through its app or website, and the company would then remit tax revenue to the state quarterly. Sean Maguire, Anchorage Daily News, 4 June 2023 The investigation began in 2017 after one of Ryan’s employees filed a complaint indicating Ryan was retaining his client’s premiums rather than remitting them to insurance companies. City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 May 2023 Advertisement Unable to produce quality tech products, Africa has been a ready tech market for developed economies—especially gadgets and software—oftentimes exploiting the continent’s data and only remitting tax to their home countries. Faustine Ngila, Quartz, 22 Feb. 2023
Noun
The Hague’s remit also extends not only to the hands-on-keyboards hackers themselves, Freeman notes, but to the command structure above those hackers, opening the possibility of new charges against higher-level officers within Russia’s military or even Russian president Vladimir Putin himself. Andy Greenberg, WIRED, 7 Sep. 2023 In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and the various battles for social justice in recent years, the foundation is seeking to broaden its remit in helping to empower communities to achieve better health outcomes. Abid Rahman, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Aug. 2023 When he was hired, Warren knew one of his key remits would be the delivery of a fresh conference TV deal experts believed should break $1 billion and could promise as much as $100 million per year, per school. Zach Osterman, The Indianapolis Star, 26 July 2023 Townley’s remit will expand to include documentary in addition to his current role overseeing unscripted development over the group at large. K.j. Yossman, Variety, 11 May 2023 In a sprawling exit interview with New York Times reporter David Wallace-Wells, the outgoing director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases — whose remit extended well beyond his station — makes little effort to hide his bitterness. Noah Rothman, National Review, 25 Apr. 2023 Its remit has encouraged analogies to a combined CIA and FBI, but is far more secretive about its work – without even a public website describing its activities. Nectar Gan, CNN, 11 Aug. 2023 Lim’s expanded remit also includes overseeing the joint venture company, Landmark Films, which is operated by CEO Solomon Lourdesraj and is one of Malaysia’s leading line production companies. Patrick Frater, Variety, 24 Apr. 2023 His global remit also includes extending CBS News and CBS Sports content to the Paramount+, as well as responsibility for BET, Paramount Television Studios and the company’s free-to-air networks in the U.K., Australia, Argentina and Chile. Manori Ravindran, Variety, 13 June 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'remit.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English remitten "to send back (to prison), refer, pass on, surrender, waive, forgive," borrowed from Latin remittere "to send back, refer, release, relax, ease off, waive (a debt, punishment)," from re- re- + mittere "to release, let go, send (for a purpose)" — more at admit entry 1

Noun

Middle English remyt "pardon," noun derivative of remitten "to remit entry 1"

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of remit was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near remit

Cite this Entry

“Remit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/remit. Accessed 4 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

remit

1 of 2 verb
re·​mit ri-ˈmit How to pronounce remit (audio)
remitted; remitting
1
a
: to release from the guilt or penalty of : pardon
remit sins
b
: to keep from demanding or calling for
remit a penalty
2
: to give over for consideration, judgment, decision, or action
remit the proposal to a special committee
3
: to send money especially in payment
4
: to lessen in intensity or severity often temporarily : moderate
the fever had remitted
remitment noun
remittable adjective
remitter noun

remit

2 of 2 noun
1
: an act of remitting
2
: something remitted to another person or authority

Medical Definition

remit

intransitive verb
re·​mit ri-ˈmit How to pronounce remit (audio)
remitted; remitting
: to abate symptoms for a period : go into or be in remission
her leukemia remitted for a year

Legal Definition

remit

verb
re·​mit ri-ˈmit How to pronounce remit (audio)
remitted; remitting

transitive verb

1
a
: to release from the guilt or penalty of
b
: to refrain from exacting
remit a tax
c
: to cancel or refrain from inflicting
remit the fine
2
: to submit or refer for consideration, judgment, decision, or action
specifically : remand
3
: to restore or consign to a former status or condition
4
: to send (money) to a person or place especially in payment of a demand, account, or draft

intransitive verb

: to send money (as in payment)
remitment noun
remittable adjective
Etymology

Verb

Latin remittere to let go back, send back, give up, forgive, from re- back + mittere to let go, send

More from Merriam-Webster on remit

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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