Meaning & use
permission to leave
Last updated
Meanings
phraseuncountable
Approval from someone in authority that allows you to go away from a place or duty.
Grammar: Used as an uncountable noun phrase: say 'permission to leave', not 'a permission to leave'.
Patterns
- get permission to leave
- ask for permission to leave
- give someone permission to leave
- permission to leave something
The soldiers waited by the gate until they received permission to leave the base.
She asked her manager for permission to leave the meeting early.
Without permission to leave the country, he could not board the plane.
phrasecountableformal
An official spoken or written statement allowing a person to go out or depart.
Grammar: Can be countable when it means a particular written or spoken authorization: 'a permission to leave was issued'.
Patterns
- grant permission to leave
- issue permission to leave
- refuse permission to leave
The prison governor signed the permission to leave, and the visitor walked out.
Permission to leave was refused because the investigation was still open.
Common combinations
- ask for permission to leave
- He asked for permission to leave the classroom and went to the nurse.
- get permission to leave
- You need to get permission to leave work early on Friday.
- give someone permission to leave
- The teacher gave the students permission to leave once the bell rang.
- refuse permission to leave
- The officer refused permission to leave until the paperwork was complete.
- without permission to leave
- Nobody may go without permission to leave from a supervisor.
Synonyms and how they differ
- authorization
- More formal and often used for written approval from an organization rather than a person.
- clearance
- Common in military, aviation and security contexts, where it suggests an official check has been passed.
- leave
- As a noun, this means time away that has already been approved, not the act of being allowed to go.
Opposites
Word family
- permit verb
- To officially allow something to happen.
- permissible adjective
- Allowed by a rule or law.
- permission noun
- The general state of being allowed to do something.
Commonly confused: permission to leave or leave?
permission to leave vs leave
'Leave' as a noun means authorized time off work, while 'permission to leave' is the approval itself; 'He is on leave' does not mean he is asking to go.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'permission to leave' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Permission to leave' is an uncountable phrase followed by the infinitive 'to leave', so option 0 is correct. Option 1 wrongly adds 'a', option 2 uses 'for leaving' instead of the fixed infinitive pattern, and option 3 makes it plural, which is not standard here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “permission to leave”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.