Question

sanction The bill's opponents claimed that removing criminal penalties for drug possession would amount to sanctioning drug use. ˈsæŋkʃən

Accepted Answer

To give approval to. Sanction originally meant “make holy” or “give official church approval to.” The word still has a solemn sound to it, so sanctioning is something generally done by an institution or government, though not necessarily by a church. So a college may sanction—or “give its blessing to”—the use of office space by a gay organization, or a hot-rod association may sanction two new tracks for official races. But sanction is also a noun, which may have two near-opposite meanings, “approval” and “penalty.” Thus, a company may be accused of giving its sanction to illegal activities. But when two or more countries impose sanctions on another country, it often involves cutting off trade. No wonder sanction is such a tricky word for so many of us

word	sanction
definition	To give approval to.
eg_sentence	The bill's opponents claimed that removing criminal penalties for drug possession would amount to sanctioning drug use.
explanation	Sanction originally meant “make holy” or “give official church approval to.” The word still has a solemn sound to it, so sanctioning is something generally done by an institution or government, though not necessarily by a church. So a college may sanction—or “give its blessing to”—the use of office space by a gay organization, or a hot-rod association may sanction two new tracks for official races. But sanction is also a noun, which may have two near-opposite meanings, “approval” and “penalty.” Thus, a company may be accused of giving its sanction to illegal activities. But when two or more countries impose sanctions on another country, it often involves cutting off trade. No wonder sanction is such a tricky word for so many of us
IPA	ˈsæŋkʃən

Sanction Approval Drug Sanctioning Give Official Word Bill's