credential: Meaning and Definition of

cre•den•tial

Pronunciation: (kri-den'shul), [key]
— n.
  1. Usually,
  2. evidence of authority, status, rights, entitlement to privileges, or the like, usually in written form: Only those with the proper credentials are admitted.
  3. anything that provides the basis for confidence, belief, credit, etc.
—v.t.
  1. to grant credentials to, esp. educational and professional ones: She has been credentialed to teach math.
—adj.
  1. providing the basis for confidence, belief, credit, etc.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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