authority

/ɔːˈθɒrəti/ noun

Definition

POWER [U] › the official power to make decisions or to control other people: a position of authority [+ to do sth] The investigators have the authority to examine all the company's records. We need the support of someone in authority.

OFFICIAL GROUP [C] › an official group or government department with power to control particular public services: the local housing authority

QUALITY [U] › the quality of being confident and being able to control people: She has an air of authority.

an authority on sth › someone who has a lot of knowledge about a particular subject: She is an authority on seventeenth-century English literature. → See also local authority

(Definition of authority noun from the Cambridge Learner's Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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