sanction

nouns

formal and explicit approval
"a Democrat usually gets the union's endorsement"
countenance, endorsement, imprimatur, indorsement, sanction, warrant
a mechanism of social control for enforcing a society's standards
sanction
is a type of (narrower)
control exerted (actively or passively) by group action
social control
official permission or approval
"authority for the program was renewed several times"
authorisation, authority, authorization, sanction
the act of final authorization
"it had the sanction of the church"
sanction
is a type of (narrower)
the act of conferring legality or sanction or formal warrant
authorisation, authorization, empowerment

verbs

give sanction to
"I approve of his educational policies"
O.K., approve, okay, sanction
give authority or permission to
sanction
is derived from
sanctionative
is a type of (narrower)
give or delegate power or authority to
"She authorized her assistant to sign the papers"
authorise, authorize, empower
give religious sanction to, such as through on oath
"sanctify the marriage"
sanction
is a type of (narrower)
give sanction to
"I approve of his educational policies"
O.K., approve, okay, sanction