whitelist

7 synonyms and 5 antonyms for whitelist, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.

Noun — A list of people, addresses, applications or sites that are explicitly approved and allowed through a filter or security control, when everything else is blocked.

Synonyms

Everyday swaps

Common words most readers know — safe in any writing.

allow permit

Less common

Still standard English, but they carry more weight.

approve

Rare, literary or technical

Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.

allowlist safe list approved list presale list

Synonyms by Meaning

1. noun

A list of people, addresses, applications or sites that are explicitly approved and allowed through a filter or security control, when everything else is blocked.

“Add our email address to your whitelist so the newsletter reaches your inbox.”

allowlist safe list approved list

Opposites

blacklist blocklist denylist

2. verb

To place something or someone on such a list so that it is permitted.

“Please whitelist the domain before the migration.”

allow approve permit

Opposites

blacklist block ban

3. noun

In cryptocurrency and token sales, a pre-approved list of wallet addresses permitted to take part in a mint or early sale.

“She got on the whitelist for the drop by joining the Discord early.”

allowlist presale list

How to use whitelist

The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.

whitelist an address IP whitelist whitelisted domain get on the whitelist

Neutral and technical. Allowlist is now preferred in many style guides and codebases.

Etymology

From white plus list, formed by analogy with the older blacklist.

Full origin of whitelist →

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a whitelist and a blacklist?

A whitelist blocks everything by default and permits only what is on the list. A blacklist permits everything by default and blocks only what is on the list. Whitelisting is far more restrictive and therefore more secure, but needs more maintenance.

Why do people say allowlist instead of whitelist?

Many organisations have adopted allowlist and blocklist because the older pair implies white means good and black means bad. The replacements are also clearer to non-native speakers, since they say plainly what the list does. The meaning is unchanged.

How do I whitelist an email address?

In most mail clients you add the sender to your contacts, or create a filter or rule that never sends mail from that address to spam. The exact wording differs — Gmail calls it a filter, Outlook a safe sender.

People also searched

allow block ban permit approve blocklist blacklist

Nearby words

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