0 an official order, such as the stopping of trade, that is taken against a country in order to make it obey international law: --
1 approval or permission, especially formal or legal: --
2 to formally give permission for something: --
The government was reluctant to sanction intervention in the crisis.
3 approval or permission: --
To be just, a government must have the sanction of the governed.
4 an official action taken against a government to force it to behave in a particular way or as punishment for not doing so: --
5 to formally permit something: --
The UN sanctioned intervention in the crisis.
People were surprised at the time by the severity of the sanctions.
She is in favour of a relaxation of the sanctions.
The UN announced its intentions to toughen sanctions still further.
The UN has imposed punitive sanctions on the invading country.
A package of economic sanctions is to be enacted against the country.