let 1 of 2

verb

ˈlet How to pronounce let (audio)
Definition of letnext
1
as in to allow
to give permission to my parents would not let me drive until I had a job and could pay for my own gas

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to rent
chiefly British to give the possession and use of (something) in return for periodic payment the pensioner has begun letting rooms in her home to earn some extra money

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in to enable
to make able or possible the low gravity on the moon lets you make enormous leaps and jumps

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to tolerate
to fail to prevent (some behavior on someone's part) especially from neglect or indifference they let their kids get away with murder

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

let

2 of 2

noun

as in obstacle
something that makes movement or progress difficult artists are allowed to sell their goods in the public square without let or hindrance

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word let different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of let are charter, hire, lease, and rent. While all these words mean "to engage or grant for use at a price," hire and let, strictly speaking, are complementary terms, hire implying the act of engaging or taking for use and let the granting of use.

we hired a car for the summer
decided to let the cottage to a young couple

When is it sensible to use charter instead of let?

While the synonyms charter and let are close in meaning, charter applies to the hiring or letting of a vehicle usually for exclusive use.

charter a bus to go to the game

When could lease be used to replace let?

The words lease and let can be used in similar contexts, but lease strictly implies a letting under the terms of a contract but is often applied to hiring on a lease.

the diplomat leased an apartment for a year

When might rent be a better fit than let?

Although the words rent and let have much in common, rent stresses the payment of money for the full use of property and may imply either hiring or letting.

instead of buying a house, they decided to rent
will not rent to families with children

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of let
Verb
Rather than let the tariffs kick in, Trump postponed them again, this time to August 1st. —John Cassidy, New Yorker, 14 July 2025 Taylor was never interested in letting her health hold her back from traveling. —Angela Andaloro, People.com, 14 July 2025 Two new developments will let the company do even more to bolster its streaming operations. —Brian Steinberg, Variety, 14 July 2025 Alongside her glittering music career (let the record show Don’t Stop the Music went triple platinum on my iPod Shuffle), Rihanna has long secured her place as a global fashion icon. —Vogue, 14 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for let
Recent Examples of Synonyms for let
  1. allow
  2. rent
  3. enable
  4. tolerate
  5. obstacle
  6. permit
  7. lease
  8. ignore
Verb
  • That approval came in September, allowing the company to market the feature as an over-the-counter medical tool.
    — Anisha Sircar, Forbes.com, 16 July 2025
  • Michael, 47, and Kerry, 46, were convicted of the murder of the toddler, per the post, while his mother, Shannon, 28, was convicted of causing or allowing his death.
    — Becca Longmire, People.com, 15 July 2025
Definition of allow
Verb
  • Owners rent their villas in weekly blocks, with rates ranging from $393 per night (Great House Villas) to $7,663 per night for stand-alone villas.
    — Paula Conway, Forbes.com, 15 July 2025
  • But if a real estate investment isn’t in the cards at the moment, settle for the next best thing by renting one of the many villas currently listed on Airbnb.
    — Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 14 July 2025
Definition of rent
Verb
  • This enables the high-magnitude flow of campaign donations toward pollution-friendly actions in Tallahassee.
    — Mel Martin, Sun Sentinel, 22 July 2025
  • That enabled Lunn to return to the mayor’s office again in 1915.
    — Time, Time, 22 July 2025
Definition of enable
Verb
  • Medicare covers it when tablets are hard to tolerate or ineffective.
    — Paula Span, Miami Herald, 18 July 2025
  • Many of our small trees are grafted onto rootstocks that can tolerate our local soil conditions.
    — Markis Hill, Kansas City Star, 18 July 2025
Definition of tolerate
Noun
  • The branches of the military, which maintain their own communication networks, have their own obstacles.
    — Dexter Filkins, New Yorker, 14 July 2025
  • For Superman, that means preventing any of the negatives that do initially arise from becoming obstacles or bandwagon narratives in the press.
    — Mark Hughes, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025
Definition of obstacle
Verb
  • If time permits, disconnect utilities and appliances.
    — CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 25 July 2025
  • Filling in for Armstead last season, Paul permitted three sacks and 15 pressures in 229 pass blocking chances, and PFF rated him 81st (worst) among tackles as a run blocker.
    — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 24 July 2025
Definition of permit
Verb
  • The Enquirer excluded 11 people who wrote in but live outside Hamilton County and five comments that were neutral or not directly related to lease terms.
    — Erin Glynn, The Enquirer, 25 July 2025
  • Rather than selling robots as capital equipment, specialized financing companies purchase robots directly from manufacturers using low-cost debt, then lease them to end customers on subscription terms.
    — Aditya Ranjan, Forbes.com, 22 July 2025
Definition of lease
Verb
  • Donald Trump promised to go after the worst of the worst, but his administration's heavy-handed tactics in many cases ignore people's constitutional rights and the rule of law.
    — Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 July 2025
  • Having said that, beachgoers have already been ignoring signs and fencing to get to the beach, especially on weekends.
    — Caitlin Looby, jsonline.com, 23 July 2025
Definition of ignore

Phrases Containing let

Browse Nearby Words

lessors
let
let alone
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Let.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/let. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on let

Nglish: Translation of let for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about let

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Using Bullet Points ( • )

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Better Ways to Say 'This Sucks'

8 Words with Fascinating Histories
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All