tenure

ten·ure

noun \ˈten-yər also -ˌyu̇r\

Definition of TENURE

1

: the act, right, manner, or term of holding something (as a landed property, a position, or an office); especially : a status granted after a trial period to a teacher that gives protection from summary dismissal

2

: grasp, hold

— ten·ur·able \-ə-bəl\ adjective

— te·nur·ial \te-ˈnyu̇r-ē-əl\ adjective

— te·nur·ial·ly \-ə-lē\ adverb

Examples of TENURE

1. During his tenure as head coach, the team won the championship twice.
2. her 12-year tenure with the company
3. His tenure in office will end with the next election.
4. After seven years I was finally granted tenure.
5. He hopes to get tenure next year.
6. The defendant did not have tenure on the land.
7. land tenure in Anglo-Saxon Britain
8. … but there is also about it just the trace of the nettlesome righteousness that alienated much of Washington during his tenure there, the not-so-subtle suggestion that while he might be in politics, he is not of politics and certainly not, God_forbid, a politician. —Jim Wooten, New York Times Magazine, 29 Jan. 1995
9. Pittsburgh's offensive linemen, trap blockers during Noll's tenure, had to bulk up for the straight-ahead game. —Paul Zimmerman, Sports Illustrated, 9 Nov. 1992
10. A mural on the upper half of a four-story guesthouse was painted in 1977 by twelve-year-old schoolchildren, whose tenure on the scaffold must have thrilled their parents. —John McPhee, New Yorker, 22 Feb. 1988

Origin of TENURE

Middle English, from Anglo-French teneure, tenure, from Medieval Latin tenitura, from Vulgar Latin *tenitus, past participle of Latin tenēre to hold — more at thin

First Known Use: 15th century

Related to TENURE

Synonyms

hitch, stint, term, tour

Related Words

shift, watch; go, turn; duration, standing, time; cycle, span, spell, stretch; life, life span, lifetime, run

Other Education Terms

baccalaureate, colloquium, corequisite, dissertation, monograph, pedant, practicum, survey course, thesis

Rhymes with TENURE

abjure, adjure, Adour, allure, amour, Ashur, assure, brochure, ceinture, cocksure, coiffure, conjure, contour, couture, demure, detour, dirt-poor, endure, ensure, faubourg, for sure, Fraktur, grandeur, gravure, guipure, hachure, immure, impure, insure, inure, kultur, land-poor, langur, ligure, manure, mature, mohur, obscure, parure, perdure, procure, rondure, secure, siddur, tambour, tandoor, Uighur, unmoor, velour, velure