waiver

noun

waiv·er | \ ˈwā-vər

Definition of waiver

1 : the act of intentionally relinquishing or abandoning a known right, claim, or privilege also : the legal instrument evidencing such an act

2 : the act of a club's waiving the right to claim a professional ball player who is being removed from another club's roster —often used in the phrase on waivers denoting the process by which a player to be removed from a roster is made available to other clubs

Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More about waiver

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of waiver in a Sentence

a criminal defendant's waiver of a jury trial The college got a special waiver from the town to exceed the building height limit. He signed an insurance waiver before surgery.

Recent Examples on the Web

For a second time, a Howard County lawmaker has introduced legislation that would impede county officials from giving certain waivers to those who wish to build in historic Ellicott City. — Erin B. Logan, baltimoresun.com, "Bill would impede Howard waivers for developers in Ellicott City," 3 July 2019 Wall Street banks such as Wells Fargo & Co. and Citigroup Inc. have often needed such disciplinary waivers to exclude business activities from automatic bars that are... — Dave Michaels, WSJ, "Washington Offers Companies Facing Enforcement a Package Deal," 3 July 2019 Houston now has seven days to either trade Reed or pass him through outright waivers. — Chandler Rome, Houston Chronicle, "Astros designate A.J. Reed for assignment to make room for Jose Urquidy," 2 July 2019 While the state had offered Nike $1 million, another $2 million in funding and fee waivers comes directly from the city. — Joshua Bowling, azcentral, "Goodyear officials silent as Gov. Doug Ducey says Arizona 'doing fine without Nike'," 2 July 2019 According to Flipside's website, participants can speed up their registration process by purchasing their sessions and signing waivers online. — Ivana Hrynkiw | Ihrynkiw@al.com, al.com, "Check out new water inflatables at Oak Mountain State Park," 1 July 2019 So the sensible thing to do would be make the rules the same across the board and eliminate the need for waivers altogether. — Dan Wolken, USA TODAY, "Opinion: Time for NCAA to give football, basketball players one-time pass to transfer," 26 June 2019 California, Mississippi, West Virginia and, most recently, Maine have gotten rid of both sorts of waivers, and these states have some of the highest vaccination rates for measles and several other diseases. — The Scientific American Staff, Scientific American, "The U.S. Needs To Tighten Vaccination Mandates," 24 June 2019 Players with options can go back and forth between the majors and minors without being subjected to waivers. — Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, "Twins players with options bear with the up-and-down life," 24 June 2019

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about waiver

Dictionary Entries near waiver

Statistics for waiver

Last Updated

9 Jul 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for waiver

The first known use of waiver was in 1628

See more words from the same year

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for waiver

waiver

noun

Financial Definition of waiver

What It Is

A waiver is a party's voluntary renunciation of rights in a contractual arrangement.

How It Works

When two parties enter into a contract, they often agree to forfeit some of their respective rights or claims. Either party may use a waiver -- expressed either in writing or through the performance of a specific deed -- to officially give up a privilege, right, or claim.

For example, one party might sign a waiver stating that he or she will not take legal action against the other party if there is some unintentional wrongdoing.

Why It Matters

It is important to remember that a party who signs a waiver is surrendering his or her right to pursue a course of action (file a lawsuit, receive compensation, etc). In most cases, a party will sign a waiver only if he or she receives a benefit in exchange for doing so.

Source: Investing Answers

waiver

noun

English Language Learners Definition of waiver

: the act of choosing not to use or require something that you are allowed to have or that is usually required

: an official document indicating that someone has given up or waived a right or requirement

See the full definition for waiver in the English Language Learners Dictionary

waiver

noun

waiv·er | \ ˈwā-vər

Legal Definition of waiver

: the act of intentionally or knowingly relinquishing or abandoning a known right, claim, or privilege also : the legal instrument evidencing such an act — compare estoppel, forfeiture

Note: Acts or statements made while forming or carrying out a contract may constitute a waiver and prevent a party from enforcing a contractual right (as when an insurer is barred from disclaiming liability because of facts known to it when it issued the insurance policy). Varying standards are applied by courts to determine if there has been a waiver of various constitutional rights (such as the right to counsel) in criminal cases.