charter

play

noun char·ter \ ˈchär-tər \

Definition of charter

1 :a written instrument (see ¹instrument 4) or contract (such as a deed) executed in due form

2 a :a grant or guarantee of rights, franchises, or privileges from the sovereign power of a state or country

The charter allows for unrestricted trading.

b :a written instrument that creates and defines the franchises (see ¹franchise 2) of a city, educational institution, or corporation

a city charter

a corporate charter

c :constitution

the Charter of the United Nations

3 :a written instrument from the authorities of a society creating a lodge or branch

The national headquarters aproved the charter establishing the local lodge.

4 :a special privilege, immunity, or exemption

5 :a mercantile lease of a ship or some principal part of it

In the charter the ship's owner agreed to transport specified cargo to a specified port.

6 :a charter travel arrangement

An agent handled the charter providing aircraft travel to and from the tournament.

See charter defined for English-language learners

See charter defined for kids

Examples of charter in a Sentence

The charter allows for unrestricted trading.

Recent Examples of charter from the Web

More than 200 school districts and charter schools statewide canceled or delayed classes.

— will weissert, The Seattle Times, "Texas schools shuttered by Harvey could stay that way awhile," 29 Aug. 2017
Many black education professionals and parents remain vehemently against charter schools.

— roy s. johnson, AL.com, "TV One host Roland S. Martin brings 'School Choice is the Black Choice' town to 3 Alabama cities, invites critics," 23 Aug. 2017
The group's charter expired on Sunday, and on Friday, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration acting administrator Ben Friedman told the group it would not be renewed.

— brittney mcnamara, Teen Vogue, "Former Northwestern Professor Accused of Murder Reportedly Acted on a Fantasy," 21 Aug. 2017
Collier dreams of reopening that school, which was shuttered because of competition with charter schools.

— roxie hammill, kansascity, "Formed by ex-slaves, KCK’s Pleasant Green Baptist celebrates 150 years of empowerment," 18 Aug. 2017
That allows for four guests at no additional cost, plus free parking, car detailing, pre-flight massages, in-suite manicures, haircuts, and preferential pricing XOJET charters.

— adam popescu, vanityfair.com, "Inside the Private, Celebrity-Friendly Terminal at LAX," 16 Aug. 2017
If Dalio is the founding father and the Principles are the constitution, the charter will turn the latter into law.

— bess levin, The Hive, "Ray Dalio’s Master Plan to Make His Hedge Fund Cult Immortal," 10 Aug. 2017
Thickly cut San Marzanos (from a Lincoln Heights charter school garden) are at their most lyrical between flaky pastry and a swirl of crème fraîche.

— garrett snyder, Los Angeles Magazine, "The Los Angeles Magazine Hot Restaurant List for July 2017," 18 July 2017
Many charter schools counsel out students who can’t meet the academic demands, which is far from the promise of trying to ensure that every child gets a free and fair education.

— valerie strauss, Washington Post, "The deep irony in Betsy DeVos’s first speech on special education," 18 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'charter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of charter

Middle English chartre, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin chartula, from Latin, diminutive of charta — see ¹chart

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

charter

verb

Definition of charter

transitive verb

1 a :to establish, enable, or convey by charter

The city was chartered in 1837.

b British :certify

a chartered mechanical engineer

2 :to hire, rent, or lease for usually exclusive and temporary use

chartered a boat for deep-sea fishing

—

charterer

play \-tər-ər\ noun

See charter defined for English-language learners

Examples of charter in a Sentence

The city was chartered in 1837.
The team chartered a plane.

Recent Examples of charter from the Web

Wahl said the safest option to bring the suspect back to San Diego to stand trial was by chartering a plane.

— lauryn schroeder, sandiegouniontribune.com, "San Diego city officials explain expenses on driftwood, maracas," 25 Aug. 2017
The following day saw African-American champ George Dixon clobber plucky youngster Jack Skelly in a one-sided bout for the featherweight crown that ended when Dixon dropped Skelly in the eighth round. Chartered in 1883,

— NOLA.com, "1892: A gentleman, a brawler and the New Orleans fight that reinvented boxing," 15 Aug. 2017
Fourteen Boy Scouts and eight leaders from Troop 1 chartered by Florence Christian Church participated in a weekend campout and visit to Kentucky Down Under near Cave City, Kentucky.

— cincinnati, Cincinnati.com, "Florence Scouts visit Kentucky Down Under," 16 July 2017
The newly formed and chartered Judeo/Christian Republican Club (of South Florida) had its second meeting recently at the South County Civic Center in Delray Beach and just as at its first gathering, there was a full house of almost 200 people.

— randall p. lieberman, Jewish Journal, "Judeo/Christian Republican Club formed in South Florida," 14 July 2017
Less is known about what happened aboard the Crystal, which had been chartered by a Japanese company to bring cargo from Nagoya, on Japan’s central coast, to Tokyo.

— scott shane, The Seattle Times, "Investigators’ task to find out why U.S. destroyer failed to dodge cargo ship," 24 June 2017
Less is known about what happened aboard the Crystal, which had been chartered by a Japanese company to bring cargo from Nagoya, on Japan's central coast, to Tokyo.

— scott shane, Alaska Dispatch News, "Why did a U.S. destroyer fail to dodge a cargo ship?," 24 June 2017
Troop 1208, which just finished its seventh year, is chartered at St. Mary of the Mills Church and includes members of various faiths.

— mary schneidau sullivan, Laurel Leader, "Public Works recycling competition rewards with $10 discount [Old Town Laurel]," 21 June 2017
A February report by the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, an independent safety advisory group chartered by Congress, detailed the magnitude of the gap.

— patrick malone and r. jeffrey smith, Washington Post, "Safety lapses undermine nuclear warhead work at Los Alamos," 18 June 2017

Origin and Etymology of charter

see ¹charter

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

charter Synonyms

Synonyms

hire, engage, lease, rent

Antonyms

disqualify

Related Words

sublease, sublet; check out; arrange (for), bespeak, book, contract (for), order, reserve, sign up (for)

Near Antonyms

ban, bar, block, constrain, deny, disallow, disbar, discourage, disenfranchise, disfranchise, exclude, hinder, hold back, impede, inhibit, obstruct, prevent, shut out, stop; enjoin, forbid, interdict, outlaw, prohibit, proscribe, veto

Synonym Discussion of charter

hire, let, lease, rent, charter mean to engage or grant for use at a price. hire and let, strictly speaking, are complementary terms, hire implying the act of engaging or taking for use and let the granting of use.

- we hired a car for the summer
- decided to let the cottage to a young couple

lease strictly implies a letting under the terms of a contract but is often applied to hiring on a lease.

- the diplomat leased an apartment for a year

rent stresses the payment of money for the full use of property and may imply either hiring or letting.

- instead of buying a house, they decided to rent
- will not rent to families with children

charter applies to the hiring or letting of a vehicle usually for exclusive use.

- charter a bus to go to the game

Other Transportation Terms

camber, corduroy, demurrage, milestone

charter

adjective

Definition of charter

:of, relating to, or being a travel arrangement in which transportation (such as a bus or plane) is hired by and for one specific group of people

a charter flight

See charter defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of charter from the Web

The National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA) reviews all charter school applications the Commission considers and rates all applications in three areas: educational program design, operations, and financial plans.

— trisha powell crain, AL.com, "Alabama commission approves two new public charter schools," 27 June 2017
Charter students hand deliver #yeson7069 letters to Gov Scott office.

— kristen m. clark, miamiherald, "What are Floridians telling Rick Scott now about the schools bill? It’s mixed.," 25 May 2017
Charter school management organizations often spend a good deal of money to market and recruit students, which traditional districts don’t do.

— valerie strauss, Washington Post, "The problems with 2017 national rankings of America’s high schools," 21 May 2017
Charter cities, such as Palo Alto, would be exempt from new rules.

— kevin kelly, The Mercury News, "City may weigh in on state bill against outsourcing," 12 May 2017
At this point, it is aimed only at cities and counties operating under general state law, not charter cities such as San Jose and a number of others in Silicon Valley or charter counties like Santa Clara.

— mercury news editorial board, The Mercury News, "Editorial: Union bill in California legislature to limit local cities’ contracting decisions is an ambiguous mess," 21 Apr. 2017
Charter school advocate Betsy DeVos won confirmation as education secretary Tuesday by the slimmest of margins, pushed to approval only by the historic tie-breaking vote of Vice President Mike Pence.

— Orange County Register, "DeVos ekes out confirmation win as Pence casts historic vote," 7 Feb. 2017
The Excise and Licenses director is a charter officer position, one of 11 jobs in Hancock’s Cabinet that require the setting of their salaries in city ordinance, with council approval required for any change.

— jon murray, The Denver Post, "Hancock administration seeks big boost in salary for Denver licensing director," 11 Jan. 2017

First Known Use of charter

1922

Other Transportation Terms

camber, corduroy, demurrage, milestone

CHARTER Defined for English Language Learners

charter

play

noun

Definition of charter for English Language Learners

: a document issued by a government that gives rights to a person or group
: a document which declares that a city, town, school, or corporation has been established
: a document that describes the basic laws, principles, etc., of a group

charter

verb

Definition of charter for English Language Learners

: to give a charter to (a government, corporation, etc.)
: to hire (a ship, bus, etc.) for temporary use

charter

adjective

Definition of charter for English Language Learners

: hired for temporary use

CHARTER Defined for Kids

charter

play

noun char·ter \ ˈchär-tər \

Definition of charter for Students

1 :an official document setting out the rights and duties of a group

The charter grants broad trading rights.

2 :a document which declares that a city, town, school, or corporation has been established

3 :a document that describes the basic laws or principles of a group

the charity's charter

charter

verb

Definition of charter for Students

chartered; chartering

1 :to grant a charter to

The city was chartered in 1853.

2 :to hire (as a bus or an aircraft) for temporary use

The team chartered a plane.

Law Dictionary

charter

noun char·ter

legal Definition of charter

1 a :a grant or guarantee of rights, powers, or privileges from an authority or agency of a state or country

a state bank charter

— compare constitution

b :a written instrument that creates and defines the powers and privileges of a city, educational institution, or corporation — compare articles of incorporation

2 :a written instrument from the authorities of a society creating a lodge, branch, or chapter

3 :a lease of a ship especially for the delivery of cargo — called also charter party

Origin and Etymology of charter

Old French chartre letter, formal document, from Late Latin chartula, from Latin, diminutive of charta sheet of papyrus

charter

transitive verb

legal Definition of charter

1 :to establish, enable, or convey by charter

charter a bank

2 :to lease or hire for usually exclusive and temporary use

charter a ship

Learn More about charter

See words that rhyme with charter Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for charter Spanish Central: Translation of charter Nglish: Translation of charter for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of charter for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about charter

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charter

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Examples of charter in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of charter

charter

Definition of charter

charterer

Examples of charter in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of charter

charter Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Synonym Discussion of charter

Other Transportation Terms

charter

Definition of charter

Recent Examples of charter from the Web

First Known Use of charter

Other Transportation Terms

CHARTER Defined for English Language Learners

charter

Definition of charter for English Language Learners

charter

Definition of charter for English Language Learners

charter

Definition of charter for English Language Learners

CHARTER Defined for Kids

charter

Definition of charter for Students

charter

Definition of charter for Students

Law Dictionary

charter

legal Definition of charter

Origin and Etymology of charter

charter

legal Definition of charter

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