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
Through hunting license sales and the Pittman-Robertson Act, millions flow into wildlife restoration, habitat protection, and public education efforts every year. Maria Davidson, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 June 2025 That’s all from the state’s emergency order suspending the license of Maria Gonzalez’s Mystic Cosmetic Center, which did business at 2020 SW First St. as New World Medical & Mystic Cosmetic Surgery. David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 1 June 2025
Verb
The show will launch on Youtube and will be available for licensing by traditional TV channels and platforms. Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 2 June 2025 The New York Times Co. has reached a deal to license its editorial content to Amazon.com Inc. for use across its artificial intelligence platforms, marking the first such agreement the newspaper company has struck after years of battles between the media and a new, disruptive technology. Bloomberg, Mercury News, 30 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for license
Recent Examples of Synonyms for license
Noun
  • In entertainment, one of the more significant proposals is the No Fakes Act, which would give individuals a right to control their digital likeness, meaning that content creators would need permission to recreate celebrities and anyone else using AI.
    Ted Johnson, Deadline, 5 June 2025
  • National Donut Day, which comes around annually on the first Friday of June, isn't just promotional permission to partake in pastries – the celebration has some historical heft.
    Mike Snider, USA Today, 5 June 2025
Noun
  • The delegation hoped to get answers on whether a recent directive had been issued calling for additional enforcement actions outside of courthouses.
    Alexandra Mendoza, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 June 2025
  • The American delegation will be led by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
    Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 June 2025
Noun
  • The government is also now appealing to the public to help find and deport people in the country without authorization.
    Andrea Castillo, Los Angeles Times, 12 June 2025
  • And the bar’s takeover last summer was not exactly legal: It had been permitted for sidewalk seating and got a summons for using the street without authorization.
    Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 11 June 2025
Verb
  • The access also frequently gives the hackers the ability to move throughout a customer’s network, enabling attacks on other cloud services and internal corporate networks.
    Reuters, CNN Money, 4 June 2025
  • Centralized registries could enable real-time tracking of donors.
    William A. Haseltine, Forbes.com, 4 June 2025
Noun
  • The legislation’s sponsor is the commission’s most hardline conservative, Commissioner Roberto Gonzalez.
    Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 6 June 2025
  • Speed limits on state highways can be set by either the commission or by city government if its within city limits.
    Brayden Garcia, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 June 2025
Noun
  • However, Gomez said, the overall takeaway from the L.A. event was just how pervasive the sense of fear for press freedom has become.
    Liam Reilly, CNN Money, 5 June 2025
  • Shortly after, Mars will square Uranus on June 15, creating a volatile energy between your desire for personal freedom and autonomy, versus unpredictable events that shake up your day-to-day routines and sense of stability.
    Valerie Mesa, People.com, 4 June 2025
Verb
  • His administration has accused the schools of allowing antisemitism and facilitating the spread of pro-Hamas propaganda by permitting the campus protests, which free-speech advocates say are protected by the First Amendment.
    Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 June 2025
  • But even now, decades later, the U.S. has fewer missile interceptors deployed (44) than the treaty permitted (100).
    Matthew Bunn, The Conversation, 6 June 2025
Noun
  • Make Promotions Default Milkman and Pink advocate for a shift in promotion practices, suggesting that organizations should make promotions the default rather than requiring individuals to opt-in.
    Julie Kratz, Forbes.com, 8 June 2025
  • The event will feature wrestlers from both promotions as well as performers from Total Nonstop Action.
    Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 7 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“License.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/license. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.

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