How to Use sanction in a Sentence

sanction

1 of 2 noun
  • The country acted without the sanction of the other nations.
  • Their policy has legal sanction.
  • Oil sanctions are a good idea, long time coming.
    — Chicago Tribune, Twin Cities, 28 Oct. 2025
  • For the elite, at least, sanctions have done little to dent their lives.
    — Will Ripley, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2025
  • There will be weapons, sanctions, and pushback.
    — Simon Shuster, The Atlantic, 13 Feb. 2026
  • This isn’t just about sanctions relief.
    — Isaac Chotiner, New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2026
  • Most of those sanctions had a duration of one year or less.
    — Matthew Kelly april 23, Kansas City Star, 23 Apr. 2026
  • But there’s still a big discount to Brent due to sanctions.
    — David McHugh, Fortune, 14 Mar. 2026
  • But there’s still a big discount to Brent due to sanctions.
    — David McHugh, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026
  • It was framed not as a sanctions measure, but as a trade dispute.
    — Brett Erickson, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Sep. 2025
  • But the sanctions are not meant to last forever.
    — Chiara Eisner, NPR, 17 Mar. 2026
  • Trump has maintained that sanctions will stay in place, but has still left the door open for more talks.
    — Fox News, 18 June 2019
  • There’s no bonus for doing it, and there’s no sanction for not doing it.
    — Washington Post, 4 May 2021
  • Two of these actions—more weapons and sanctions—could take place before any cease-fire.
    — Andriy Zagorodnyuk, Foreign Affairs, 23 Sep. 2025
  • Some sanctions on Russia and Venezuela have been eased.
    — Matt Egan, CNN Money, 18 May 2026
  • These are tremendous sanctions.
    — Alexandra Hutzler, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2025
  • The rules of business are often enforced with sanctions of some kind.
    — Art Markman, Fortune, 4 Mar. 2020
  • Trump also ramps up threats of sanctions on Russia.
    — The Hill, 24 Sep. 2025
  • Still, the pace and scale of the effort has stunned longtime sanctions observers.
    — Daniel Flatley, Fortune, 28 June 2026
  • Years of heavy reliance on sanctions have not collapsed these networks.
    — Gaurav Srivastava, The Washington Examiner, 19 Apr. 2026
  • Hardship caused, in part, by US sanctions.
    — James Sneed, NPR, 6 Feb. 2026
  • North Korea's missile tests have been met with stronger sanctions.
    — Sarah Rense, Esquire, 8 Sep. 2017
  • That sanction included the loss of this year’s second-round pick.
    — Mike Brehm, USA TODAY, 15 Oct. 2020
  • Bessent did not provide details on what the sanctions would entail.
    — Brett Samuels, The Hill, 22 Oct. 2025
  • The sanctions drew praise from Ukraine and its supporters.
    — Alexander Smith, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2025
  • Breaches of the cost cap can carry major sanctions.
    — Luke Smith, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2025
  • Then his lawyer threatens legal sanctions.
    — Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 19 Apr. 2026
  • And Iran wants the United States to lift sanctions.
    — CBS News, 27 Feb. 2026
  • Trump said the new sanctions were in part a retaliation for the drone strike.
    — John Fritze, USA TODAY, 25 June 2019
  • The issue before this court is what sanction is sufficient to achieve that goal.
    — David Kravets, Ars Technica, 23 Sep. 2017

sanction

2 of 2 verb
  • The government has sanctioned the use of force.
  • His actions were not sanctioned by his superiors.
  • The state sanctioned him for it and ordered him to pay a fine.
    — Mike Hendricks, Kansas City Star, 14 Aug. 2025
  • The death penalty, too, is sanctioned for a wide range of crimes.
    — Mick Krever, CNN Money, 1 Mar. 2026
  • The site names those sanctioned since 2017.
    — Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 9 Oct. 2025
  • Yet, this arrest is sanctioned?
    — Boston Herald Editorial Staff, Boston Herald, 4 June 2026
  • He was also sanctioned and had his assets frozen.
    — Dan Sheldon, New York Times, 1 Apr. 2026
  • Only one thing is clear—there is no form of black protest that white supremacy will sanction.
    — Kellie Carter Jackson, The Atlantic, 1 June 2020
  • That’s where the sanctioning bodies come in.
    — Chris McKenna, New York Times, 28 Feb. 2026
  • Some even ask the court to sanction the first party for their misconduct.
    — Derek H. Kiernan-Johnson, The Conversation, 1 Feb. 2024
  • God never sanctions cruelty; love that harms is not love at all.
    — Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
  • None of these events are sanctioned or promoted by Swift or her team.
    — Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2025
  • The right decision was reached and the right player was sanctioned.
    — Ben Burrows, New York Times, 13 June 2026
  • Suarez, as of publication, has not yet been sanctioned by the league.
    — Felipe Cardenas, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025
  • He was sanctioned by the US in 2019.
    — Abbas Al Lawati, CNN Money, 1 Mar. 2026
  • Britain sanctioned both companies last week.
    — Zac Anderson, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
  • They are placed on the restricted list and the team is powerless to sanction them.
    — Dan Shaughnessy, BostonGlobe.com, 27 June 2022
  • And about half admit to using AI tools not sanctioned at work.
    — Rachel Wells, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026
  • The sport has also grown in states that previously sanctioned it.
    — Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 Sep. 2025
  • The oil tanker Skipper was a part of the dark fleet; it was formally sanctioned three years ago.
    — Jordan Blum, Fortune, 17 Dec. 2025
  • Twenty-three states have already sanctioned flag football.
    — Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 June 2026
  • Although sanctioned by the union, the league isn’t limited to members.
    — Elvia Limón, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2023
  • Eight vessels were also sanctioned.
    — Mark Osborne, CBS News, 28 May 2026
  • In addition, there are many other sports like bass fishing that are not yet sanctioned yet still field teams at many schools.
    — Bird Brown, baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll, 16 Nov. 2019
  • The team is not sanctioned by the school district but included players who are students.
    — Chris Mayhew, Cincinnati.com, 11 Jan. 2018
  • The board agreed and sanctioned him with a $1,000 fine and two years’ probation.
    — Audrey Dutton, idahostatesman, 15 Jan. 2018
  • In April it was sanctioned as part of a package of measures against Russia.
    — The Economist, 5 May 2018
  • The other members of the alliance would never sanction it, but that’s besides the point.
    — Ian Bremmer, Time, 6 July 2018
  • It is scheduled to meet June 21 to determine if she should be sanctioned.
    — Andrew Wolfson, The Courier-Journal, 14 June 2018
  • Among those states, over 20 have officially sanctioned the sport.
    — Langston Wertz Jr, Charlotte Observer, 7 May 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sanction.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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