empower
verb
em·pow·er
im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r 
empowered; empowering; empowers
1
: to give official authority or legal power to
empowered her attorney to act on her behalf
2
: enable sense 1a
… nootropic agents empower the lower amounts of acetylcholine in diseased brains to work overtime …—
Science News
Science News3
: to promote the self-actualization or influence of
The American women's movement has been inspiring and empowering women for nearly 20 years …—Ron Hansen
Ron HansenMembers of our discipline often envision themselves as agents of social change who try to promote critique of dominant ideologies and empower students to become active participants in the larger political world.—Christy Friend
Christy FriendExamples of empower in a Sentence
seeking changes in the workplace that will empower women
the federal agency empowered to collect taxes
Recent Examples on the Web
His goal with Gaia Family was to build something different, a program that uses data to empower families instead of leaving them to navigate uncertainty and mounting debt.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 16 Nov. 2025
Some of those differences include a more complete picture of Quintanilla Perez as an empowered and empowering female artist in the early ’90s.
—Sofía Hanalei Sanchez, CNN Money, 16 Nov. 2025
Vmake empowers the modern professional.
—New Atlas, 16 Nov. 2025
The proposal quickly drew criticism from surrogacy advocates, LGBTQ+ family groups, and reproductive rights lawyers, who accused Alsalem of ignoring evidence about ethical frameworks and erasing the voices of surrogates who describe their experiences as empowering.
—Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for empower
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Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 16 Nov. 2025
Some of those differences include a more complete picture of Quintanilla Perez as an empowered and empowering female artist in the early ’90s.
—Sofía Hanalei Sanchez, CNN Money, 16 Nov. 2025
Vmake empowers the modern professional.
—New Atlas, 16 Nov. 2025
The proposal quickly drew criticism from surrogacy advocates, LGBTQ+ family groups, and reproductive rights lawyers, who accused Alsalem of ignoring evidence about ethical frameworks and erasing the voices of surrogates who describe their experiences as empowering.
—Jesus Mesa, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for empower
Cite this Entry
“Empower.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empower. Accessed 20 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
empower
verb
em·pow·er
im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r
: to give official authority or legal power to
Legal Definition
empower
transitive verb
em·pow·er
im-ˈpau̇-ər
: to give official authority or legal power to
no branch of government should be empowered unilaterally to impose a serious penalty—L. H. Tribe
L. H. TribeLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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