Authority
WordNet
noun
(1) Official permission or approval
"Authority for the program was renewed several times"
(2) The power or right to give orders or make decisions
"He has the authority to issue warrants"
"Deputies are given authorization to make arrests"
"A place of potency in the state"
(3) Freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities
"His assurance in his superiority did not make him popular"
"After that failure he lost his confidence"
"She spoke with authority"
(4) An authoritative written work
"This book is the final authority on the life of Milton"
(5) An administrative unit of government
"The Central Intelligence Agency"
"The Census Bureau"
"Office of Management and Budget"
"Tennessee Valley Authority"
(6) An expert whose views are taken as definitive
"He is an authority on corporate law"
(7) (usually plural) persons who exercise (administrative) control over others
"The authorities have issued a curfew"
WiktionaryText
Noun
- The power to enforce rules or give orders.
- Persons in command; specifically, government.
- A person accepted as a source of reliable information on a subject.
Quotations
- 1930 September 18, Albert Einstein, as quoted in Albert Einstein: Creator and Rebel (1988) by Banesh Hoffman
- To punish me for my contempt of authority, Fate has made me an authority myself.