What does authority mean?
Definitions for authority
əˈθɔr ɪ ti, əˈθɒr-au·thor·i·ty
Here are all the possible meanings and translations of the word authority.
Princeton's WordNet
authority, authorization, authorisation, potency, dominance, say-sonoun
the power or right to give orders or make decisions
"he has the authority to issue warrants"; "deputies are given authorization to make arrests"; "a place of potency in the state"
authoritynoun
(usually plural) persons who exercise (administrative) control over others
"the authorities have issued a curfew"
authoritynoun
an expert whose views are taken as definitive
"he is an authority on corporate law"
assurance, self-assurance, confidence, self-confidence, authority, surenessnoun
freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities
"his assurance in his superiority did not make him popular"; "after that failure he lost his confidence"; "she spoke with authority"
agency, federal agency, government agency, bureau, office, authoritynoun
an administrative unit of government
"the Central Intelligence Agency"; "the Census Bureau"; "Office of Management and Budget"; "Tennessee Valley Authority"
authority, authorization, authorisation, sanctionnoun
official permission or approval
"authority for the program was renewed several times"
authoritynoun
an authoritative written work
"this book is the final authority on the life of Milton"
Wiktionary
authoritynoun
The power to enforce rules or give orders.
authoritynoun
Persons in command; specifically, government.
authoritynoun
A person accepted as a source of reliable information on a subject.
The world's foremost authority on orangutans.
Etymology: autorite, from auctorité, from stem of auctoritas, from auctor
Webster Dictionary
Authoritynoun
legal or rightful power; a right to command or to act; power exercised buy a person in virtue of his office or trust; dominion; jurisdiction; authorization; as, the authority of a prince over subjects, and of parents over children; the authority of a court
Authoritynoun
government; the persons or the body exercising power or command; as, the local authorities of the States; the military authorities
Authoritynoun
the power derived from opinion, respect, or esteem; influence of character, office, or station, or mental or moral superiority, and the like; claim to be believed or obeyed; as, an historian of no authority; a magistrate of great authority
Authoritynoun
that which, or one who, is claimed or appealed to in support of opinions, actions, measures, etc
Authoritynoun
testimony; witness
Authoritynoun
a precedent; a decision of a court, an official declaration, or an opinion, saying, or statement worthy to be taken as a precedent
Authoritynoun
a book containing such a statement or opinion, or the author of the book
Authoritynoun
justification; warrant
Etymology: [OE. autorite, auctorite, F. autorit, fr. L. auctoritas, fr. auctor. See Author, n.]
Freebase
Authority
The word authority is derived from the Latin word auctoritas, meaning invention, advice, opinion, influence, or command. In English, the word authority can be used to mean power given by the state or by academic knowledge of an area. The word Authority with capital A refers to the governing body upon which such authority is vested; for example, the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority or the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
Authority
awth-or′it-i, n. legal power or right: power derived from office or character: weight of testimony: permission:—pl. Author′ities, precedents: opinions or sayings carrying weight: persons in power.—adj. Author′itative, having the sanction or weight of authority: dictatorial.—adv. Author′itatively.—n. Author′itativeness. [L. auctoritatem, auctoritas, auctor.]
Dictionary of Nautical Terms
authority
The legal power or right of commanding.
Military Dictionary and Gazetteer
authority
In a general acceptation of the term, signifies a right to command and a consequent right to be obeyed. For the appointment of officers of the U. S. army, see Appointing Power. It appears that the sovereigns of Great Britain and other nations have the power to appoint and dismiss officers at pleasure.
Editors Contribution
authority
Official right to make a specific decision.
They do have the authority to create legislation.
Submitted by MaryC on February 5, 2020
Suggested Resources
authority
The authority symbol -- In this Symbols.com article you will learn about the meaning of the authority symbol and its characteristic.
Matched Categories
British National Corpus
Spoken Corpus Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'authority' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #514
Written Corpus Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'authority' in Written Corpus Frequency: #697
Nouns Frequency
Rank popularity for the word 'authority' in Nouns Frequency: #77
Numerology
Chaldean Numerology
The numerical value of authority in Chaldean Numerology is: 4
Pythagorean Numerology
The numerical value of authority in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2
Examples of authority in a Sentence
Men decide far more problems by hate, love, lust, rage, sorrow, joy, hope, fear, illusion, or some other inward emotion, than by reality, authority, any legal standard, judicial precedent, or statute.
... above this race of men stands an immense and tutelary power, which takes upon itself alone to secure their gratifications, and to watch over their fate. That power is absolute, minute, regular, provident, and mild. It would be like the authority of a parent, if, like that authority, its object was to prepare them for manhood; but it seeks, on the contrary, to keep them in perpetual childhood...
Anyone who in discussion relies upon authority uses, not his understanding, but rather his memory.
At least at the Parish level, there's no teeth in this, the parishes do not have any oversight or regulatory authority for nursing homes.
The agreement from the summit doesn't have binding authority over what the people do or don't do, and it can't undercut the universal value of human rights.
Popularity rank by frequency of use
Translations for authority
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- gesagAfrikaans
- سلطةArabic
- хөкүмәт, дәүләтBashkir
- ўладаBelarusian
- власти, авторитет, власт, познавачBulgarian
- autoritaCzech
- myndighedDanish
- Behörde, AutoritätGerman
- ŋusẽEwe
- αρχή, εξουσία, αρχές, αυθεντίαGreek
- aŭtoritato, instancoEsperanto
- autoridadSpanish
- asjatundja, võimEstonian
- قدرتPersian
- viranomaiset, auktoriteetti, käskyvalta, vaikutusvalta, asiantuntijaFinnish
- autoritéFrench
- údarás, urlámhasIrish
- ùghdarrasScottish Gaelic
- autoridadeGalician
- בר-סמכא, סמכות, רשויותHebrew
- hatóság, felhatalmazás, tekintéy, meghatalmazás, szaktekintélyHungarian
- հեղինակությունArmenian
- autoritàItalian
- סמכותHebrew
- 権威, 当局, 権力Japanese
- 권능, 권력자, 권위자, 권력Korean
- بهردهستی, دهسهڵاتKurdish
- кадыр-барк, билгич, башчы, бедел, авторитет, кадырлуулук, беделдүүлүк, чоңдор, түп, уруксат, кадыр, бийлик, ыйгарым укук, негиз, авторитеттүүлүкKyrgyz
- auctoritatisLatin
- AutoritéitLuxembourgish, Letzeburgesch
- kanoiMāori
- awtoritarju, awtoritarja, awtoritáMaltese
- gezag, bevoegdheid, autoriteit, autoriteitenDutch
- autoritetNorwegian
- autorytet, władzaPolish
- autoridadePortuguese
- autorități, autoritateRomanian
- авторитет, властьRussian
- avtoritetaSlovene
- autoritetAlbanian
- myndighet, auktoritetSwedish
- mamlakaSwahili
- அதிகாரம்Tamil
- అధికారముTelugu
- yetkeTurkish
- владаUkrainian
- אויטאָריטעטYiddish
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"authority." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2022. Web. 27 Jun 2022. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/authority>.
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