Allowance - Definition

n 1: an amount allowed or granted (as during a given period);
"travel allowance"; "my weekly allowance of two eggs"; "a
child's allowance should not be too generous"
2: a sum granted as reimbursement for expenses
3: an amount added or deducted on the basis of qualifying
circumstances; "an allowance for profit" [syn: allowance,
adjustment]
4: a permissible difference; allowing some freedom to move
within limits [syn: allowance, leeway, margin,
tolerance]
5: a reserve fund created by a charge against profits in order
to provide for changes in the value of a company's assets
[syn: valuation reserve, valuation account, allowance,
allowance account]
6: the act of allowing; "He objected to the allowance of smoking
in the dining room"
v 1: put on a fixed allowance, as of food