grant

1 of 2

verb

ˈgrant 

granted; granting; grants

transitive verb

1

a

: to consent to carry out for a person : allow fulfillment of

grant a request

b

: to permit as a right, privilege, or favor

luggage allowances granted to passengers

2

: to bestow or transfer formally

grant a scholarship to a student

specifically : to give the possession or title of by a deed

3

a

: to be willing to concede

I grant you that the house is not in perfect condition.

b

: to assume to be true

granting that you are correct

grantable

ˈgran-tə-bəl 

adjective

granter

ˈgran-tər 

noun

grantor

ˈgran-tər 

-ˌtȯr;

gran-ˈtȯr 

noun

see also take for granted

grant

2 of 2

noun

1

: the act of granting

2

: something granted

especially : a gift (as of land or money) for a particular purpose

3

a

: a transfer of property by deed or writing

b

: the instrument (see instrument entry 1 sense 5) by which such a transfer is made

also : the property so transferred

4

: a minor territorial division of Maine, New Hampshire, or Vermont originally granted by the state to an individual or institution

Synonyms

Verb

• acknowledge
• admit
• agree
• allow
• concede
• confess
• fess (up)
• own (up to)

Noun

• allocation
• allotment
• annuity
• appropriation
• entitlement
• subsidy
• subvention

Choose the Right Synonym for grant

grant, concede, vouchsafe, accord, award mean to give as a favor or a right.

grant implies giving to a claimant or petitioner something that could be withheld.

granted them a new hearing

concede implies yielding something reluctantly in response to a rightful or compelling claim.

even her critics concede she can be charming

vouchsafe implies granting something as a courtesy or an act of gracious condescension.

vouchsafed the secret to only a few chosen disciples

accord implies giving to another what is due or proper.

accorded all the honors befitting a head of state

award implies giving what is deserved or merited usually after a careful weighing of pertinent factors.

awarded the company a huge defense contract

Examples of grant in a Sentence

Verb

The mayor refused to grant my request for an interview.

The court granted the motion for a new trial.

I cannot grant you that wish.

We haven't yet been granted access to the archive.

The country was granted independence in 1950.

The judge granted custody of the children to their mother.

I grant that he's a talented writer, but I just don't find his books very interesting.

The house is not perfect, I grant you that.

Noun

Her study is being funded by a federal grant.

They wrote a grant proposal to get funding for the project.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Morrissey’s temporary restraining order was granted before being reversed by a higher court for violating the network’s First Amendment rights. —Christy Piña, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 May 2024

The search continues, and it was announced earlier this week by the U.K.'s Home Office that up to a further approximate $241,000 had been granted to look into Madeleine's disappearance, per the BBC. —Becca Longmire, Peoplemag, 3 May 2024

Lali, who was granted special privileges as a tattooist, would smuggle letters and extra rations to Gita (Anna Próchniak). —Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 3 May 2024

The sheriff’s office repeated Friday that at this stage in the investigation, anyone granted permission by Anderson to enter his home may do so. —Lainey Seyler, Journal Sentinel, 3 May 2024

The latter argue Tesla can afford to take its foot off the accelerator now that the rest of the U.S. industry adopted his plug and charging standard to grant their customers access to his network. —Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 2 May 2024

Baker has co-founded 17 companies and been granted over 100 patents. —Will Henshall, TIME, 2 May 2024

The framework for the feature is how colonialism still manages to impact indigenous people many years after their nations were granted independence. —Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 2 May 2024

Showalter’s direction grants the film an eroticism without ever showing us more than a hint of bare bottom. —Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 2 May 2024

Noun

The new fire department, built through a $2.7 million FEMA grant in 2009, sits on the site of the city's historic police headquarters at 25 Gerald Street across from the historic firehouse. —Amelia Benavides-Colón, Detroit Free Press, 5 May 2024

The Tohono O'odham Nation received a $50,000 grant to help test wells for PFAS contaminants close to the affected area Tucson Water is treating. —Clara Migoya, The Arizona Republic, 4 May 2024

Roughly $500 of the grant money will go toward buying compost tumblers to help fertilize a community garden at Argonaut Park, land owned by the school district and adjacent to the high school. —Mathew Miranda, Sacramento Bee, 3 May 2024

Tesla had also accepted $17 million in federal EV charging grants before gutting the Supercharger team. —Umar Shakir, The Verge, 3 May 2024

Last week the university paused seeking or accepting gifts or grants from Boeing pending a review of weapons sales to Israel. —Christopher Cann, USA TODAY, 4 May 2024

John Archibald, a former member of the church who now resides in Arkansas, said a group of congregation members and others are continuing in their efforts to create a foundation or nonprofit entity to take over maintenance of the 119-year-old building, using grants and a new stream of revenue. —Jim Riccioli, Journal Sentinel, 3 May 2024

The RSUs vest over a three-year period, with first vesting occurring six months from the date of grant (at which point 6/36ths vest) and, thereafter, the RSUs vest at a rate of 3/36th per quarter for the remainder of the vesting period subject to the continued employment of the grantee. —Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 May 2024

As Politico points out, 13 percent of all grants awarded is unlikely to prompt any antitrust claims. —Collin Woodard / Jalopnik, Quartz, 1 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French granter, graanter, from Vulgar Latin *credentare, from Latin credent-, credens, present participle of credere to believe — more at creed

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing grant

• block grant
• give/grant/do interviews
• grant/deny access to
• grant-in-aid
• land grant

Kids Definition

grant

1 of 2 verb

ˈgrant 

1

a

: to consent to : permit

grant your request

b

: to permit as a right, privilege, or favor

granted them a day off for volunteer work

2

: to give the possession or benefit of formally or legally

the king granted land to the settlers

3

: to admit something not yet proved to be true

granted you are right, you must still pay for the damage

granter

-ər 

noun

grantor

ˈgrant-ər  grant-ˈȯr 

noun

grant

2 of 2 noun

1

: the act of granting

2

: something granted: as

a

: a gift (as of money or land) for a particular purpose

a research grant

b

: an area of land granted by a government

Legal Definition

grant

1 of 2 transitive verb

1

: to permit as a right or privilege

grant a new trial

the Supreme Court granted certiorari

2

: to bestow or transfer formally

specifically : to transfer the possession or title of by a deed : convey

grant

2 of 2 noun

1

: the act of granting

2

: something granted

especially : a gift (as of land or money) for a particular purpose

3

a

: a transfer of property by deed or writing

b

: the instrument by which such a transfer is made

also : the property so transferred

Biographical Definition

Grant 1 of 2

biographical name (1)

ˈgrant 

Cary 1904–1986 originally Archibald Alexander Leach American (British-born) actor

Grant

2 of 2

biographical name (2)

Ulysses S. 1822–1885 originally Hiram Ulysses Grant American general; 18th president of the U.S. (1869–77)