Etimology
From Middle English auctorite, autorite (“authority, book or quotation that settles an argument”), from Old French auctorité, from Latin stem of auctōritās (“invention, advice, opinion, influence, command”), from auctor (“master, leader, author”). For the presence of the h, compare the etymology of author.
noun
authority (countable and uncountable, plural authorities)
(uncountable) Power or right to make or enforce rules or give orders; or a position having such power or right.
(plural) Persons, regarded collectively, who occupy official positions of power; police or law enforcement.
(countable) A reliable, definitive source of information on a subject.
(uncountable) Status as a trustworthy source of information, reputation for mastery or expertise; or claim to such status or reputation.
(uncountable) Official permission; authorisation to act in some capacity on behalf of a ruling entity.
(countable) A government-owned agency that runs a revenue-generating activity for public benefit.
Examples
Synonyms: command, rulership, sovereignty
I have the authority to penalise the staff in my department, but not the authority to sack them.
Vigilantes may have the power to nab criminals, but they lack the authority.
She lost all respect and authority after turning up drunk at the meeting.
Respect my authority!
SIR PETER. Very well! ma'am very well! so a husband is to have no influence, no authority?LADY TEAZLE. Authority! no, to be sure—if you wanted authority over me, you should have adopted me and not married me[:] I am sure you were old enough.
But in the meantime Robin Hood and his band lived quietly in Sherwood Forest, without showing their faces abroad, for Robin knew that it would not be wise for him to be seen in the neighborhood of Nottingham, those in authority being very wroth with him.
Authorities say the suspect fled on foot.
The case was that of a murder. It had an element of mystery about it, however, which was puzzling the authorities. A turban and loincloth soaked in blood had been found; also a staff.
No sooner has a [synthetic] drug been blacklisted than chemists adjust their recipe and start churning out a subtly different one. These “legal highs” are sold for the few months it takes the authorities to identify and ban them, and then the cycle begins again.
In China, authorities said they might soon shoot down an unidentified flying object over waters near the northern city of Rizhao, The South China Morning Post reported.
the world's foremost authority on orangutans
My cheap dictionary is not the authority on word derivations.
To punish me for my contempt of authority, Fate has made me an authority myself.
Synonyms: cred, gravitas
Some thinkers regard appealing to authority as a logical fallacy; others regard it as a legitimate form of argument.
Authority to construct eight carriages, to test the new design in public service, had already been given; but of course complete working drawings had first to be prepared.
New York Port Authority
Chicago Transit Authority
Related words
related terms
author
authoritarian
authoritative
authorization