empower
verb
em·pow·er
im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r 
empowered; empowering; empowers
1
: to give official authority or legal power to
empowered her attorney to act on her behalf
2
: enable sense 1a
… nootropic agents empower the lower amounts of acetylcholine in diseased brains to work overtime …—
Science News
Science News3
: to promote the self-actualization or influence of
The American women's movement has been inspiring and empowering women for nearly 20 years …—Ron Hansen
Ron HansenMembers of our discipline often envision themselves as agents of social change who try to promote critique of dominant ideologies and empower students to become active participants in the larger political world.—Christy Friend
Christy FriendExamples of empower in a Sentence
seeking changes in the workplace that will empower women
the federal agency empowered to collect taxes
Recent Examples on the Web
The Alien Enemies Act empowers presidents to apprehend and remove foreign nationals from countries that are at war with the United States.
—Daniel Tichenor, The Conversation, 17 Mar. 2025
Having all these females that can empower people to not be like everyone else.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 17 Mar. 2025
In Africa, mobile money platforms like M-Pesa have revolutionized financial access, enabling over $50 billion in monthly transactions and empowering millions to leapfrog traditional banking systems.
—Sergio Fogel, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
During Friday's hearing, Oz vowed to empower patients to take charge of their health care and crack down on fraud, waste and abuse to safeguard federal health programs.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 17 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for empower
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Daniel Tichenor, The Conversation, 17 Mar. 2025
Having all these females that can empower people to not be like everyone else.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 17 Mar. 2025
In Africa, mobile money platforms like M-Pesa have revolutionized financial access, enabling over $50 billion in monthly transactions and empowering millions to leapfrog traditional banking systems.
—Sergio Fogel, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
During Friday's hearing, Oz vowed to empower patients to take charge of their health care and crack down on fraud, waste and abuse to safeguard federal health programs.
—Daniel De Visé, USA TODAY, 17 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for empower
Cite this Entry
“Empower.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/empower. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
empower
verb
em·pow·er
im-ˈpau̇(-ə)r
: to give official authority or legal power to
Legal Definition
empower
transitive verb
em·pow·er
im-ˈpau̇-ər
: to give official authority or legal power to
no branch of government should be empowered unilaterally to impose a serious penalty—L. H. Tribe
L. H. TribeLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share