unauthorized

adjective

un·​au·​tho·​rized ˌən-ˈȯ-thə-ˌrīzd How to pronounce unauthorized (audio)
: not authorized : without authority or permission
an unauthorized biography
unauthorized communications
was unauthorized to act for her husband

Examples of unauthorized in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Then came a sprawling federal indictment in which he is accused of stealing the identities of donors and using their credit cards to make tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges, and wiring some of the money to his personal bank account. Anthony Izaguirre, Fortune, 5 Dec. 2023 The indictment alleges specifically that Santos stole the identities of campaign donors and then used their credit cards to make tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges. Kevin Freking The Associated Press, arkansasonline.com, 2 Dec. 2023 The scope of the case expanded in October, when he was hit with more charges accusing him of stealing his campaign donors' identities and racking up thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges on their credit cards, falsifying campaign finance reports, money laundering and more. Caitlin Yilek, CBS News, 1 Dec. 2023 Workers United President Lynne Fox wrote in an op-ed that the tweet was written by one person, unauthorized by any other SWU members, and was quickly deleted. Kat Tenbarge, NBC News, 1 Dec. 2023 Immigration Millions of immigrants — those here legally as well as unauthorized migrants — find their lives constrained by the complex, sometimes irrational, twists of U.S. immigration law. Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 30 Nov. 2023 The original bootlegged upload featured an unauthorized sample of BØRNS’ voice. Lisa Kocay, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2023 The workers cheated by using two unauthorized software programs, the regulator said. Mark Maurer, WSJ, 30 Nov. 2023 The biopic tells the story of French artist Philippe Petit's unauthorized high-wire walk between the Twin Towers in 1974, and Gordon-Levitt was lucky enough to learn from the risk-taker himself. Zoey Lyttle, Peoplemag, 24 Nov. 2023 See More

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

Word History

First Known Use

1597, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of unauthorized was in 1597

Dictionary Entries Near unauthorized

Cite this Entry

“Unauthorized.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unauthorized. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

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