Permission, n.
Etymology: [L. permissio: cf. F. permission. See Permit.]
The act of permitting or allowing; formal consent; authorization; leave; license or liberty granted. High permission of all-ruling Heaven. Milton. You have given me your permission for this address. Dryden.
Syn. -- Leave; liberty; license. -- Leave, Permission. Leave implies that the recipient may decide whether to use the license granted or not. Permission is the absence on the part of another of anything preventive, and in general, at least by implication, signifies approval.
Shades of meaning
Authority unites the right and power of control; age, wisdom, and character give authority to their possessor; a book of learned research has authority, and is even called an authority. Permission justifies another in acting without interference or censure, and usually implies some degree of approval. Authority gives a certain right of control over all that may be affected by the action. There may be a failure to object, which constitutes an implied permission, tho this is more properly expressed by allowance; we allow what we do not oppose, permit what we expressly authorize. The noun permit implies a formal written permission. License is a formal permission granted by competent authority to an individual to do some act or pursue some business which would be or is made to be unlawful without such permission; as, a license to preach, to solemnize marriages, or to sell intoxicating liquors. A license is permission granted rather than authority conferred; the sheriff has authority (not permission nor license) to make an arrest. Consent is permission by the concurrence of wills in two or more persons, a mutual approval or acceptance of something proposed. Compare allow.