The term "allowable" refers to something that is permitted, authorized or acceptable within a certain set of rules, guidelines or standards. It can be used in various contexts such as in accounting where it means conforming to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), in engineering where it pertains to the maximum load capacity of a structure, and even in everyday language when referring to something that is permitted by parents or authority figures. In essence, "allowable" refers to what meets the criteria for being considered acceptable or permissible within a particular framework.