licence and license are homophones: they are pronounced identically and spelled differently, which is why they are so often swapped. licence means “excessive freedom; lack of due restraint”. license means “a legal document giving official permission to do something”. license is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈlaɪsəns/
1.n.excessive freedom; lack of due restraint
“when liberty becomes license dictatorship is near”
2.n.freedom to deviate deliberately from normally applicable rules or practices (especially in behavior or speech)
3.n.a legal document giving official permission to do something
| licence | license | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈlaɪsəns/ | /ˈlaɪsəns/ |
| Said | LAHY-suhns | LAHY-suhns |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| Letters | 7 | 7 |
| Parts of speech | noun, verb | noun, verb |
| Senses | 4 | 5 |
| How common | Familiar | Common |
| Synonyms | license | licence, permit |
Full entry for licence · Full entry for license · More comparisons
/ˈlaɪsəns/
1.n.a legal document giving official permission to do something
2.n.freedom to deviate deliberately from normally applicable rules or practices (especially in behavior or speech)
3.n.excessive freedom; lack of due restraint
“when liberty becomes license dictatorship is near”