as in deserved
being what is called for by accepted standards of right and wrong
in light of her admission of having lied, the only rightful course of action for the governor would be to resign
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Recent Examples of rightful
Hawaii's annexation and the 1993 Apology Resolution acknowledged the harm caused by colonization, continue to raise questions about who has rightful claims to the land.
—
Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 July 2025
Nationally, about $4 billion annually is returned by all 50 states to the rightful owners as the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators says that one in every seven Americans is owed money.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 25 July 2025
The most unfortunate 9% of the more than 1,000 employees surveyed reported that their employer actively discouraged taking time off.
Do not give up your rightful vacation time!
—Caroline Ceniza-Levine, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
Prediction markets have been likened to gambling by critics, who argue the CFTC is not an appropriate overseer and that states are the rightful regulators.
—Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 21 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rightful
Lydia Patrick, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 July 2025
Nationally, about $4 billion annually is returned by all 50 states to the rightful owners as the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators says that one in every seven Americans is owed money.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 25 July 2025
The most unfortunate 9% of the more than 1,000 employees surveyed reported that their employer actively discouraged taking time off.
Do not give up your rightful vacation time!
—Caroline Ceniza-Levine, Forbes.com, 21 July 2025
Prediction markets have been likened to gambling by critics, who argue the CFTC is not an appropriate overseer and that states are the rightful regulators.
—Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 21 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rightful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rightful
Adjective
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Well, almost: Colman Domingo picks up the lone nom in the Supporting Actor category, which, frankly, is well deserved.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
15 July 2025
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But there’s another aspect of military life that rarely gets deserved attention: the relentless cycle of relocation.—
William Jones,
USA Today,
25 July 2025
Adjective
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But six months after Spring Training camp in Arizona and amid a run in which the Giants have won only seven of their last 24 games, that optimism has been replaced with justified anger and confusion.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
13 Aug. 2025
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The four teams from Texas are all justified selections for their respective spots.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
13 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rightful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rightful. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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