license 1 of 2

variants or licence

license

2 of 2

verb

variants also licence

Synonym Chooser

How is the word license different from other nouns like it?

The words freedom and liberty are common synonyms of license. While all three words mean "the power or condition of acting without compulsion," license implies freedom specially granted or conceded and may connote an abuse of freedom.

freedom without responsibility may degenerate into license

Where would freedom be a reasonable alternative to license?

Although the words freedom and license have much in common, freedom has a broad range of application from total absence of restraint to merely a sense of not being unduly hampered or frustrated.

freedom of the press

When is it sensible to use liberty instead of license?

The synonyms liberty and license are sometimes interchangeable, but liberty suggests release from former restraint or compulsion.

the released prisoner had difficulty adjusting to his new liberty

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of license
Noun
The energy department said being selected to receive the plutonium could help companies secure faster approval for a Nuclear Regulatory Commission license, which is required to operate a nuclear facility, reported Financial Times. Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2025 As a secondary issue, Good asked how the loss of King’s license affects his deputies, who are appointed by the sheriff and derive their authority from him. Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
Roughly 30% of jobs in California require a person to be licensed, and many of those licenses are off-limits for people with old convictions. Joanna Hernandez, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Oct. 2025 As of 2025, the state’s Natural Medicine Division has begun licensing psilocybin healing centers, which follows Colorado’s recreational legalization of cannabis for people 21 and over in 2014. John Wenzel, Denver Post, 15 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for license
Recent Examples of Synonyms for license
Noun
  • Customers in Texas and Arizona can receive parcels from the flying delivery liaisons, and Amazon has received beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) permissions from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which means the drones can, theoretically, start to scale for delivery.
    Meghan Hall, Sourcing Journal, 22 Oct. 2025
  • There’s a particular kind of excellence that happens when Black women stop waiting for permission and just build.
    Essence, Essence, 22 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Minister Counsellor Li Liyan of the Chinese Embassy welcomed the Shanghai delegation by highlighting the scale of China’s creative output.
    Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
  • In recent weeks, officials from New Delhi and Washington have focused on diplomacy to get the relationship back on track, with trade delegations focusing on closing a deal.
    Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Equity members have already voted in favor of a strike authorization.
    Glenn Garner, Deadline, 18 Oct. 2025
  • This practice has led some US lawmakers to push for repealing these authorizations, as Congress looks to wrestle back some authority over war powers and foreign policy.
    Morgan Chalfant, semafor.com, 17 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Not every such deprivation becomes a literal matter of life and death as in the play, but making use of such scenarios enables Shakespeare to highlight more effectively the danger of arbitrary action.
    JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 23 Oct. 2025
  • Amorim’s strategy to go direct against Liverpool worked to nullify their press and the same approach, enabling United to start play closer to the final third, looks sensible against Brighton, too.
    Laurie Whitwell, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Figure’s business centers around putting mortgages on the blockchain, which the company says speeds up the granting and funding of home loans.
    Jason Del Rey, Fortune, 12 Sep. 2025
  • The last one standing is rewarded with a financial windfall and the granting of a single wish, any wish.
    Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • However, StyleCaster may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
    Elizabeth Denton, StyleCaster, 20 Oct. 2025
  • Under California’s felony murder rule, a defendant can be charged with murder if a death occurs, regardless of intent to kill, during the commission of a felony-level crime.
    Mia Cathell, The Washington Examiner, 20 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • For many Black and Brown people in America, the outdoors was not a site of freedom but of exploitation and fear.
    Vogue, Vogue, 18 Oct. 2025
  • Without the requirement to protect majority-minority districts, Republicans would have far greater freedom to redraw congressional maps in ways that dilute the voting power of Black and other minority communities—areas that tend to favor Democrats.
    Alia Shoaib, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • If time permits, lock your home upon departure and disconnect utilities and appliances.
    NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 19 Oct. 2025
  • The original iteration of Mojaveland ran from 2021 to 2023, but had to close due to accessibility and permitting issues.
    Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Oct. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“License.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/license. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on license

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!