as in flexible
often disapproving
giving people a lot of freedom or too much freedom to do what they want to do
permissive parents Some states have more permissive laws than others.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of permissive
People have passed the point of exhaustion with permissive policies that too often make the well-being of the public at large a secondary concern at best.
—
Editorial, Boston Herald, 11 Aug. 2025
Texas has historically been more permissive of autonomous vehicle testing and operations on public roads than have other states.
—Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 8 Aug. 2025
Compared to the jellyfish parent which can be permissive to a fault and the helicopter parent who might be too overbearing, the elephant parent is typically flexible and adaptable to their child’s needs.
—Anna Earl, Parents, 2 July 2025
In Arizona, with permissive laws.
—IEEE Spectrum, 22 Mar. 2018
See All Example Sentences for permissive
Editorial, Boston Herald, 11 Aug. 2025
Texas has historically been more permissive of autonomous vehicle testing and operations on public roads than have other states.
—Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 8 Aug. 2025
Compared to the jellyfish parent which can be permissive to a fault and the helicopter parent who might be too overbearing, the elephant parent is typically flexible and adaptable to their child’s needs.
—Anna Earl, Parents, 2 July 2025
In Arizona, with permissive laws.
—IEEE Spectrum, 22 Mar. 2018
See All Example Sentences for permissive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for permissive
Adjective
-
The refrigerated deliveries are flexible based on your schedule and feature eco-friendly packaging.—
Kasey Caminiti,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Crops are left unharvested in response to market conditions, but they could be marketed with connections to more flexible buyers.—
Ivanka Trump,
Fortune,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Protesters signaled their support for Karki through an informal vote on the messaging app Discord.—
Sugam Pokharel,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Bolsonaro's presidency was marked by intense skepticism about the pandemic and vaccines and his embrace of informal mining and land-clearing for cattle grazing, pushing deforestation rates in the Amazon rainforest to record highs.—
Ricardo Brito,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Between all the aforementioned changes to college sports and the Committee on Infractions' lenient ruling in Michigan football's sign-stealing scandal, now's as good a time as any for Louisville to get started on this.—
Payton Titus,
Louisville Courier Journal,
4 Sep. 2025
-
The authorities decided to be lenient and return the boats after 11 days, with a citation.—
Suwanna Gauntlett Upjohn,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
TeamSmile also launched a new pilot program to deliver essential dental care for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), highlighting the urgent need for accessible treatment for these kids.—
Tammy Ljungblad,
Kansas City Star,
10 Sep. 2025
-
When performance metrics and strategic key performance indicators are accessible, broader stakeholder groups, including minority shareholders and society, can engage more meaningfully with corporate governance.—
Michael Hilb,
Forbes.com,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Wilson argued the Charlotte attack resulted from several failures, from lax ticket enforcement to reliance on private security, rather than policies from Cooper’s tenure.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Contraband control was equally lax.—
Walter Pavlo,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
This actually perfect pie crust is very, very pliable.—
Bon Appétit,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
4 Sep. 2025
-
This causes the eardrum, a thin, pliable membrane, to stretch.—
Melissa Willets,
Parents,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Permissive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/permissive. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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