-ˈäbzˌtat, -bˌst- noun
Etymology: Latin, nothing hinders
1. : the certification by an official censor of the Roman Catholic Church that a book has been examined and found to contain nothing opposed to faith and morals
2. : authoritative or official approval
the surest road to fame was … through the imprimatur and nihil obstat of a foreign critic — P.H.Odegard