imprimatur

Meanings

1. 1nounsingularformal

   Official approval or permission for something, especially from an important person or body.

   Grammar: Usually with the or a possessive: with the imprimatur of the council.

   Patterns

   • the imprimatur of someone
   • give something an imprimatur

   The plan received the mayor's imprimatur.

   Without the board's imprimatur, the project cannot start.

   The scheme bears the imprimatur of the Education Ministry.

2. 2nouncountablereligionspecialist

   A license, originally from the Catholic Church, allowing a book to be printed.

   Grammar: Historical and religious use: a bishop's imprimatur.

   Patterns

   • an imprimatur from a bishop

   The book carried a bishop's imprimatur on the first page.

   Old prayer books often show the imprimatur.

   The printer waited for the imprimatur before starting.

Word forms

Common combinations

official imprimatur

The report received an official imprimatur.

give the imprimatur

The committee gave its imprimatur to the plan.

receive an imprimatur

The book received an imprimatur.

bear the imprimatur

The guide bears the imprimatur of the museum.

royal imprimatur

The charity won the royal imprimatur.

Synonyms and how they differ

approval

Approval is everyday and plain, while imprimatur suggests an official stamp from an authority.

endorsement

Endorsement suggests public support, often from a famous person.

sanction

Sanction can mean permission or a penalty, so context matters.

authorization

Authorization is a formal permission, usually in writing.

Opposites

Word family

imprimatur noun

Latin for 'let it be printed'

print verb

to make copies on paper

imprint noun

a publisher's name on a book

nihil obstat noun

a Catholic statement that a book has no doctrinal error

Commonly confused: imprimatur or imprint?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “imprimatur”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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