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admit

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: admît

English

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Etymology

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From Middle English admitten, amitten, borrowed from Old French admettre, amettre (“to admit”), from Latin admittō (“to allow entrance, inlet”, literally “to send to”), from ad- + mittere (“to send”).

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ədˈmɪt/
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Rhymes: -ɪt

Verb

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admit (third-person singular simple present admits, present participle admitting, simple past and past participle admitted)

  1. (transitive) To allow to enter; to grant entrance (to), whether into a place, into the mind, or into consideration
    to admit a serious thought into the mind
    to admit evidence in the trial of a cause
    A ticket admits one into a playhouse.
    They were admitted into his house.
  2. (transitive) To allow (someone) to enter a profession or to enjoy a privilege; to recognize as qualified for a franchise.
    to admit an attorney to practice law
    The prisoner was admitted to bail.
  3. (transitive or intransitive) To concede as true; to acknowledge or assent to, as an allegation which it is impossible to deny (+ to).
    Synonyms: own up, confess
    the argument or fact is admitted
    He admitted his guilt.
    She admitted taking drugs / she admitted to taking drugs.
    • 1950 January, David L. Smith, “A Runaway at Beattock”, in Railway Magazine, pages 54–55:
      However, a Carlisle newspaper got hold of the story, and at the half-yearly meeting of the Caledonian Railway Company, held on March 17, 1863, a shareholder, Mr. Meiklem, questioned the Chairman, Lt.-Col. Salkeld, regarding a "Chase of Engines," described in the newspaper article. The Chairman admitted that the statements made in the article were perfectly true.
    • 2011, Kitty Kelley, Nancy Reagan: The Unauthorized Biography, →ISBN:
      His sister, Patti, also admitted taking drugs, […]
    • 2023 January 30, “Bangkok police admit to extorting 27,000 baht from Taiwanese actress”, in The Nation‎[1], Bangkok: The Nation Multimedia:
      Police officers at a checkpoint in Bangkok's Huay Kwang district admitted to extorting 27,000 baht from a Taiwanese actress […]
  4. (transitive) To be capable of; to permit. In this sense, "of" may be used after the verb, or may be omitted.
    The words do not admit such a construction.
    • 1669, William Holder, Elements of Speech:
      Four bells admit twenty-four changes in ringing.
    • 1761, John Mordant, The Complete Steward:
      There is no tree admits of transplantation so well as the Elm, for a tree of twenty years growth will admit of a remove.
  5. (intransitive) To give warrant or allowance, to grant opportunity or permission (+ of).
    Circumstances do not admit of this.
    The text does not admit of this interpretation.
  6. (transitive) To allow to enter a hospital or similar facility for treatment.
    • 2011 December 16, Denis Campbell, “Hospital staff 'lack skills to cope with dementia patients'”, in Guardian‎[2]:
      "This shocking report proves once again that we urgently need a radical shake-up of hospital care," said Jeremy Hughes, chief executive of the Alzheimer's Society. "Given that people with dementia occupy a quarter of hospital beds and that many leave in worse health than when they were admitted, it is unacceptable that training in dementia care is not the norm."

Usage notes

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In the sense "concede to be true", this is a catenative verb that takes the gerund (-ing). See Appendix:English catenative verbs

Synonyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

French

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Pronunciation

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Verb

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admit

  1. third-person singular past historic of admettre
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