Allowance

• POS: Noun, Verb (transitive)
• HYPHEN: al=low=ance

CIDE DICTIONARY

Allowance, n. [OF. alouance.].

•  Approval; approbation.  Crabbe.  [1913 Webster]
•  The act of allowing, granting, conceding, or admitting; authorization; permission; sanction; tolerance.  [1913 Webster]

  "Without the king's will or the state's allowance."  [1913 Webster]
•  Acknowledgment.  [1913 Webster]

  "The censure of the which one must in your allowance o'erweigh a whole theater of others."  [1913 Webster]
•  License; indulgence.  Locke.  [1913 Webster]
•  That which is allowed; a share or portion allotted or granted; a sum granted as a reimbursement, a bounty, or as appropriate for any purpose; a stated quantity, as of food or drink; hence, a limited quantity of meat and drink, when provisions fall short.  [1913 Webster]

  "I can give the boy a handsome allowance."  [1913 Webster]
•  Abatement; deduction; the taking into account of mitigating circumstances; as, to make allowance for the inexperience of youth.  [1913 Webster]

  "After making the largest allowance for fraud."  [1913 Webster]
•  A customary deduction from the gross weight of goods, different in different countries, such as tare and tret.  [1913 Webster]

Allowance, v. t. [See Allowance, n.].

 To put upon a fixed allowance (esp. of provisions and drink); to supply in a fixed and limited quantity; as, the captain was obliged to allowance his crew; our provisions were allowanced.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Allowance, n. & v.
--n.
1 an amount or sum allowed to a person, esp. regularly for a stated purpose.
2 an amount allowed in reckoning.
3 a deduction or discount (an allowance on your old cooker).
4 (foll. by of) tolerance of.
--v.tr.
1 make an allowance to (a person).
2 supply in limited quantities.

Idiom

make allowances (often foll. by for)
1 take into consideration (mitigating circumstances) (made allowances for his demented state).
2 look with tolerance upon, make excuses for (a person, bad behaviour, etc.).

Etymology

ME f. OF alouance (as ALLOW)

THESAURUS

Allowance

C ration, K ration, OK, abatement, acceptance, account, acknowledgment, adjustment, admission, agio, aid, alimony, allocation, allotment, allowing, annuity, apportionment, appreciation, appropriation, approximation, assessment, assignment, assistance, authorization, avowal, bank discount, big end, bigger half, bill, bit, bite, blackmail, blood money, board, bounty, breakage, budget, bulge, cash discount, cession, chain discount, charge-off, charter, chunk, circumscription, color, commission, commons, concession, confession, consent, consideration, contingent, countenance, credit, cut, deadwood, deal, declaration, decontamination, deduction, depletion allowance, depreciation, destiny, deviation, discount, dispensation, dividend, dole, drawback, edge, emergency rations, emolument, end, equal share, exception, excuses, exemption, extenuating circumstances, extenuation, extenuative, fate, favor, fee, fellowship, field rations, financial assistance, footing, gilding, gloss, grain of salt, grant, grant-in-aid, guaranteed annual income, half, halver, handicap, head start, hedge, hedging, help, helping, hush money, imprecision, inaccuracy, inaccurateness, incorrectness, indulgence, inexactitude, inexactness, initiation fee, interest, kickback, laxity, leave, liberty, license, limitation, looseness, lot, meals, measure, meed, mental reservation, mess, mileage, mitigation, modicum, modification, moiety, negligence, odds, okay, old-age insurance, overhand, palliation, palliative, part, patent, payment, pecuniary aid, penalty, penalty clause, pension, percentage, permission, permission to enter, permit, permitting, piece, pin money, pocket money, portion, predictable error, premium, price reduction, price support, price-cut, probable error, profession, proportion, public assistance, public welfare, qualification, quantum, quota, rake-off, ration, rations, rebate, rebatement, reckoning, recognition, recompense, reduction, refund, reimbursement, release, relief, remittance, remuneration, reservation, restriction, retainer, retaining fee, retirement benefits, rollback, salvage, salvo, sanction, sanctioning, scholarship, scot, segment, setoff, share, short commons, slice, small share, softening, special case, special permission, special treatment, specialness, specification, stake, standard deviation, start, stipend, stock, subsidization, subsidy, subvention, sufferance, suffering, support, tare, tax benefit, ticket, ticket of admission, time discount, tolerance, tolerating, toleration, trade discount, tret, tribute, tucker, uncorrectness, underselling, unfactualness, unpreciseness, unrigorousness, vantage, varnish, vouchsafement, waiver, welfare, welfare aid, welfare payments, whitewash, whitewashing, write-off

ROGET THESAURUS

Allowance

Permission

N permission, leave, allowance, sufferance, tolerance, toleration, liberty, law, license, concession, grace, indulgence, favor, dispensation, exemption, release, connivance, vouchsafement, authorization, warranty, accordance, admission, permit, warrant, brevet, precept, sanction, authority, firman, hukm, pass, passport, furlough, license, carte blanche, ticket of leave, grant, charter, patent, letters patent, permitting, permissive, indulgent, permitted, patent, chartered, permissible, allowable, lawful, legitimate, legal, legalized, licit, unforbid, unforbidden, unconditional, by leave, with leave, on leave, speciali gratia, under favor of, pace, ad libitum, by all means, yes, avec permissin, brevet d'invention.

Giving

N giving, bestowal, bestowment, donation, presentation, presentment, accordance, concession, delivery, consignment, dispensation, communication, endowment, investment, investiture, award, almsgiving, charity, liberality, generosity, gift, donation, present, cadeau, fairing, free gift, boon, favor, benefaction, grant, offering, oblation, sacrifice, immolation, lagniappe, pilon, grace, act of grace, bonus, allowance, contribution, subscription, subsidy, tribute, subvention, bequest, legacy, devise, will, dotation, dot, appanage, voluntary settlement, voluntary conveyance, amortization, alms, largess, bounty, dole, sportule, donative, help, oblation, offertory, honorarium, gratuity, Peter pence, sportula, Christmas box, Easter offering, vail, douceur, drink money, pourboire, trinkgeld, bakshish, fee, consideration, bribe, bait, ground bait, peace offering, handsel, boodle, graft, grease, blat, giver, grantor, donor, feoffer, settlor, giving, given, allowed, allowable, concessional, communicable, charitable, eleemosynary, sportulary, tributary, gratis, donative, auctor pretiosa facit, ex dono, res est ingeniosa dare.

Apportionment

N apportionment, allotment, consignment, assignment, appointment, appropriation, dispensation, distribution, division, deal, repartition, partition, administration, dividend, portion, contingent, share, allotment, fair share, allocation, lot, measure, dose, dole, meed, pittance, quantum, ration, ratio, proportion, quota, modicum, mess, allowance, suerte, apportioning, respective, respectively, each to each.

Discount

N discount, abatement, concession, reduction, depreciation, allowance, qualification, set-off, drawback, poundage, agio, percentage, rebate, rebatement, backwardation, contango, salvage, tare and tret, sale, bargain, half price, price war, wholesale, wholesale price, dealer's price, trade price, coupon, discount coupon, cents-off coupon, store coupon, manufacturer's coupon, double coupon discount, triple coupon discount, discounting, at a discount, below par, at wholesale, have a friend in the business.

Reward

N reward, recompense, remuneration, meed, guerdon, reguerdon, price, indemnity, indemnification, quittance, compensation, reparation, redress, satisfaction, reckoning, acknowledgment, requital, amends, sop, atonement, retribution, consideration, return, quid pro quo, salvage, perquisite, vail, douceur, bribe, hush money, smart money, blackmail, extortion, carcelage, solatium, allowance, salary, stipend, wages, compensation, pay, payment, emolument, tribute, batta, shot, scot, bonus, premium, tip, fee, honorarium, hire, dasturi, dustoori, mileage, crown, remunerative, remuneratory, munerary, compensatory, retributive, reparatory, rewarding, satisfactory, fideli certa merces, honor virtutis praemium, tibi seris tibi metis.

Vindication

N vindication, justification, warrant, exoneration, exculpation, acquittal, whitewashing, extenuation, palliation, palliative, softening, mitigation, reply, defense, recrimination, apology, gloss, varnish, plea, salvo, excuse, extenuating circumstances, allowance, allowance to be made, locus paenitentiae, apologist, vindicator, justifier, defendant, justifiable charge, true bill, v, justify, warrant, be an excuse for, lend a color, furnish a handle, vindicate, exculpate, disculpate, acquit, clear, set right, exonerate, whitewash, clear the skirts of, extenuate, palliate, excuse, soften, apologize, varnish, slur, gloze, put a gloss, put a good face upon, mince, gloss over, bolster up, help a lame dog over a stile, advocate, defend, plead one's cause, stand up for, stick up for, speak up for, contend for, speak for, bear out, keep in countenance, support, plead, say in defense, plead ignorance, confess and avoid, propugn, put in a good word for, take the will for the deed, make allowance for, give credit for, do justice to, give one his due, give the Devil his due, make good, prove the truth of, prove one's case, be justified by the event, vindicated, vindicating, exculpatory, apologetic, excusable, defensible, pardonable, venial, veniable, specious, plausible, justifiable, honi sot qui mal y pense, good wine needs no bush.

Qualification

N qualification, limitation, modification, coloring, allowance, grains of allowance, consideration, extenuating circumstances, mitigation, condition, proviso, prerequisite, contingency, stipulation, provision, specification, sine qua non, catch, string, strings attached, exemption, exception, escape clause, salvo, saving clause, discount, restriction, fine print, qualifying, qualified, conditioned, restricted, hedged, conditional, exceptional, hypothetical, contingent, provided, provided that, provided always, if, unless, but, yet, according as, conditionally, admitting, supposing, on the supposition of, with the understanding, even, although, though, for all that, after all, at all events, approximately, in a limited degree (smallness), somewhat, sort of, something like that, to a certain extent, to a degree, in a sense, so to speak, with grains of allowance, cum grano salis, with a grain of salt, exceptis excipiendis, wind and weather permitting, if possible, subject to, conditioned upon, with this proviso, if the good lord is willing and the creeks don't r, catch-, Degrees of Evidence.