Licensed

How to spell licensed

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce licensed

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does licensed mean?

1. adjectiveHolding or covered by official permission or a formal permit to do something.
2. verbGranted formal permission or a permit for an activity or product, in the past tense.

Licensed in a sentence

• adjective

  Only a licensed electrician should rewire the consumer unit.

• verb

  The council licensed three new market stalls this spring.

• adjective

  The bar is fully licensed to serve alcohol until midnight.

• verb

  The studio licensed the song for use in the advertisement.

Where does licensed come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin licentia, meaning 'freedom' or 'permission to do as one pleases', which itself grew from the verb licere, 'to be allowed' or 'to be lawful'. English took it in through Old French during the 1300s as a noun describing formal permission granted by an authority. By the late medieval period the word had also become a verb meaning 'to grant such permission', and licensed is its past and participle form. The spelling causes trouble because British English keeps the noun 'licence' with a c but the verb 'license' with an s, so the inflected verb is always licensed with an s in every dialect. The same licere root still lives quietly inside 'leisure' and 'illicit', which is a useful reminder that licensing is fundamentally about what is and is not allowed.

How the word is built

• licens- (from Latin licentia: freedom, permission)
• -ed (past tense / adjective suffix)

British and American spelling

Licensed is the American spelling. British English spells it licenced.