Allow

How to spell allow

5 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce allow

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does allow mean?

1. verbTo permit something to happen or someone to do something.
2. verbTo set aside a sufficient amount of time, money, or space for a purpose.

Allow in a sentence

• The new contract does not allow early withdrawal of funds.

• You should allow extra time for the drive during rush hour.

• Most airlines allow one piece of hand luggage per passenger.

• The budget must allow enough money for unexpected repairs.

Where does allow come from?

Language of origin: French

Allow comes from the Old French verb alouer, which itself blended two different Latin verbs that had drifted close together in sound. One was allaudare, 'to praise', from laudare 'to praise'; the other was allocare, 'to place' or 'to assign', from locare 'to put in place', which also gives us 'allocate' and 'locate'. The 'praise' sense softened into 'approve of' and then 'permit', while the 'assign' sense survives when we allow money or time for something. English took the word over in the 1300s and merged both threads into one verb, which is why 'allow' can mean both 'to permit' and 'to set aside an amount'. The double l and the simple -ow ending are the only real spelling points to remember.

How the word is built

• al- (to, from Latin ad-)
• low (from Latin laudare/locare, to praise/place) +; reanalysed as a single verb stem in English