n.
- An official government document that certifies one's identity and citizenship and permits a citizen to travel abroad.
- An official permit issued by a foreign country allowing one to transport goods or to travel through that country.
- An official document issued by an allied foreign government to a ship, especially a neutral merchant ship in time of war, authorizing it to enter and travel through certain waters freely.
- Something that gives one the right or privilege of passage, entry, or acceptance: Hard work was her passport to success.
[French passeport, from Old French : passer, to pass; see pass + port, port; see port1.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.