Money given regularly to someone, or permission to do something; also the amount of something you're permitted to have.
From Old French 'allouer' meaning 'to approve or assign,' combining Latin 'ad-' (to) and 'locare' (to place). The sense evolved to mean 'an assigned amount' or 'permitted quantity'.
The word perfectly captures how rules work in society—whether it's a child's weekly pocket money or dietary allowances for astronauts in space, we're always negotiating how much of something is 'okay' to have.
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