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per·mit¹

(pər-mĭt)

v. per·mit·ted, per·mit·ting, per·mits

v.tr.

1. To allow the doing of (something); consent to: permit the sale of alcoholic beverages.

2. To grant consent or leave to (someone); authorize: permitted him to explain.

3. To afford opportunity or possibility for: weather that permits sailing.

v.intr.

To afford opportunity; allow: if circumstances permit.

n. (pûrmĭt, pər-mĭt)

A document or certificate giving permission to do something: a building permit.

[Middle English permitten, from Latin permittere : per-, through; see PER- + mittere, to let go.]

per′mit·tee (pûr′mĭ-tē) n.

per·mitter n.

per·mit ²(pûrmĭt, pər-mĭt)

A carangid fish (Trachinotus falcatus) of the western Atlantic Ocean, having a laterally compressed silvery body and a deeply forked tail and valued as a food and game fish.

[Alteration of Spanish palometa, a species of pompano (Trachinotus ovatus), any of several other species of fish, probably ultimately from Doric Greek *pālamus, pālamud-, variant of Greek pēlamus, pēlamud-, young tuna, tuna in its first year, of unknown origin.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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