green light

noun

: authority or permission to proceed

green-light

ˈgrēn-ˌlīt 

transitive verb

Synonyms

• permission
• authorization
• consent
• sanction

Examples of green light in a Sentence

we were given the green light to use the town commons for our fund-raiser

Recent Examples on the Web

But despite the network’s green light, dozens of local ABC affiliates owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group and Nexstar Media Group are refusing to air the late-night show. —Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025

According to City of Oak Creek Community Development Director Kristi Laine, this was the final vote required from a city body to give the project a green light. —Adrienne Davis, jsonline.com, 24 Sep. 2025

Next, the Club wants to see Boeing get the FAA green light to boost production. —Natasha Abellard, CNBC, 24 Sep. 2025

The Oakland Police Department said Saturday that a 47-year-old man traveling northbound on a motorcycle through a green light collided with the driver’s side door of a 47-year-old Antioch man’s Toyota Corolla, who was traveling westbound on International Boulevard. —Kyle Martin, Mercury News, 20 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

from the green traffic light which signals permission to proceed

First Known Use

1937, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for green light

• affright
• airtight
• albite
• alight
• alright
• aplite
• aright
• bainite
• birthright
• bobwhite
• bornite
• bullfight