sanction

Noun

• the act of final authorization
  • it had the sanction of the church
    

• official permission or approval
  • authority for the program was renewed several times
    

• a mechanism of social control for enforcing a society's standards

• formal and explicit approval
  • a Democrat usually gets the union's endorsement
    

Verb

• give religious sanction to, such as through on oath
  • sanctify the marriage
    

• give authority or permission to

• give sanction to
  • I approve of his educational policies
    

Related words

• Synonyms: 
  authority , authorization , authorisation , countenance , endorsement , indorsement , warrant , imprimatur , approve , O.K. , okay
• Antonyms: 
  disapprove , reject