civil rights
plural noun
: rights that citizens are guaranteed by their government through legislation or other government action to ensure equal opportunities (as for employment, education, housing, or voting) and equal protection under the law regardless of personal characteristics such as race, religion, or sex
especially
: the rights of personal liberty guaranteed to U.S. citizens by the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments to the Constitution and by acts of Congress
Note: The 13th Amendment (ratified 1865) abolished slavery and the 14th Amendment (ratified 1868) granted citizenship and equal rights to all people born or naturalized in the U.S., including formerly enslaved people and African Americans generally. The 15th Amendment (ratified 1870) guaranteed the right to vote regardless of color or former enslavement.
compare civil liberty see also civil rights movementExamples of civil rights in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Hinojosa, 52, born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley, is a former civil rights lawyer and past Austin school board president.
—
Karen Brooks Harper
austin Bureau, Dallas Morning News, 3 Mar. 2026
Flags were lowered to half-staff in South Carolina Monday where Jackson, a native son and civil rights icon, became only the second Black man in history to lie in repose inside the state capitol.
—Chicago Tribune, 3 Mar. 2026
Crockett, a civil rights lawyer, is known as a firebrand, with combative comebacks and fierce messaging.
—Emily Wilkins, CNBC, 3 Mar. 2026
The Justice Department also sued after determining the states' transgender athlete policies violate federal civil rights law.
—CBS News, 3 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for civil rights
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Karen Brooks Harper
austin Bureau, Dallas Morning News, 3 Mar. 2026
Flags were lowered to half-staff in South Carolina Monday where Jackson, a native son and civil rights icon, became only the second Black man in history to lie in repose inside the state capitol.
—Chicago Tribune, 3 Mar. 2026
Crockett, a civil rights lawyer, is known as a firebrand, with combative comebacks and fierce messaging.
—Emily Wilkins, CNBC, 3 Mar. 2026
The Justice Department also sued after determining the states' transgender athlete policies violate federal civil rights law.
—CBS News, 3 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for civil rights
Cite this Entry
“Civil rights.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/civil%20rights. Accessed 7 Mar. 2026.
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