ENGLISH
REFERENCE

allowance

n. countable
C1 Advanced Oxford US //əˈɫaʊəns// UK //ɐlˈaʊəns// al·lowance Archaic

n. an amount of money that someone receives regularly, often for a specific purpose. It can also mean the amount of something you are officially allowed to have, like luggage on a plane.

n. a sum of money allotted or granted to a person on a regular basis, typically for personal expenses or a specific requirement. It also refers to a permitted amount or limit of a physical resource or activity.


SIMPLE

My parents gave me a weekly allowance for doing chores.

CONTEXTUAL

The airline has a strict baggage allowance of twenty kilograms per passenger for economy class tickets.

COMPLEX

Expatriate contracts often include a housing allowance to offset the high cost of living in major financial hubs, ensuring that employees maintain a standard of living comparable to their home country.

Synonyms
Origin

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd Proto-Italic *ad Proto-Italic *ad- Latin ad- Latin laus Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin laudō Latin allaudō Old French aloer ▲ Latin ad- Latin locus ▲ Latin -ō Latin locō Latin allocō Old French aloer Old French alouer Proto-Indo-European *-yós Proto-Italic *-ios Old Latin -ios Latin -ius Latin -iader. Old French -ance Old French alouancebor. Middle English allouance English allowance From Middle English allouance, from Old French alouance. Morphologically allow + -ance.

Usage

Commonly used in the context of budgeting, travel limits, or parenting. Often takes the preposition 'for' when describing the purpose of the money.

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