as in free hand
permission to do something in any way you choose to do it
We gave the decorator carte blanche to furnish the house.
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Recent Examples of carte blanche
Featuring a bedroom, lounge and private dining area, bathroom, library and tea room, JR was given carte blanche on the redesign of the 23-meter (75-foot) long former sleeping car.
—
Tom Page, CNN Money, 26 Dec. 2025
Crave, the Canadian streamer behind his breakout hit, gave him carte blanche to adapt the second novel in Rachel Reid’s Game Changers series, six unabashedly horny romances set in the world of men’s professional ice hockey.
—Angelina Mazza, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2025
Yet despite horrific incident after horrific incident, AI companies retain carte blanche to sell products with zero meaningful safety standards or oversight.
—Michael Kleinman, Time, 22 Nov. 2025
Anyone feeling daring can roll the dice on the four-course carte blanche for $90.
—Aoife O'Riordain, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for carte blanche
Tom Page, CNN Money, 26 Dec. 2025
Crave, the Canadian streamer behind his breakout hit, gave him carte blanche to adapt the second novel in Rachel Reid’s Game Changers series, six unabashedly horny romances set in the world of men’s professional ice hockey.
—Angelina Mazza, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2025
Yet despite horrific incident after horrific incident, AI companies retain carte blanche to sell products with zero meaningful safety standards or oversight.
—Michael Kleinman, Time, 22 Nov. 2025
Anyone feeling daring can roll the dice on the four-course carte blanche for $90.
—Aoife O'Riordain, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for carte blanche
Recent Examples of Synonyms for carte blanche
Noun
-
The 5-foot-7 junior showed slick moves to the basket and a nice shooting touch, aided by the referees’ unwillingness to whistle her for using her free hand to ward off defenders.—
Tris Wykes,
Twin Cities,
31 Jan. 2026
-
In the footage, Wang is moving slowly and supporting the child’s head and neck with his free hand.—
Owen Clarke,
Outside,
20 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
But elections are not a blank check for dysfunction.—
Jodi Balma,
Oc Register,
15 Mar. 2026
-
With Boogie Nights a huge hit and a Best Picture nominee, Paul Thomas Anderson gets a blank check from Hollywood.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
13 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Carte blanche.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/carte%20blanche. Accessed 20 Mar. 2026.
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