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sanction

verb/ˈsaŋkʃ(ə)n/

B2CEFR level
40/100Rarity: uncommon
NeutralRegister

To give official permission or approval for an action, a sense opposite to its punitive meaning.

The committee sanctioned the expedition despite lingering doubts about the budget.

Similar: authorise, approve, endorse

Topic: GRE Verbal in General English

Rarity runs from 0 (a word everyone knows) to 100 (almost never seen outside specialist or literary writing). Level is the word's real difficulty on the CEFR scale, from A1 to C2.

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More general words: GRE Verbal