charter

1 of 3

noun

char·​ter ˈchär-tər 

1

: a written instrument (see instrument entry 1 sense 5) 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 franchise entry 1 sense 1) 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 approved 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

: a charter travel arrangement

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

b

: a chartered plane, bus, etc.

Their charter had just landed at Toronto's Pearson International Airport and … everyone in the Mariners' traveling party had to slog through a tedious customs check and then claim his own luggage.

—Jeff Pearlman

7

: charter school

He pushed for the closure of Chicago's worst schools … and opened dozens of new schools, many of them charters.

—Amanda Paulson et al.

charter

2 of 3

verb

chartered; chartering; charters

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

ˈchär-tər-ər 

noun

charter

3 of 3

adjective

: 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

Synonyms

Verb

• engage
• hire
• lease
• rent

Choose the Right Synonym for 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

Examples of charter in a Sentence

Noun

The charter allows for unrestricted trading.

Verb

The city was chartered in 1837.

The team chartered a plane.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, reported on Monday that crypto firms including Circle and BitGo are planning to apply for bank charters and licenses. —Julia Shapero, The Hill, 21 Apr. 2025

Both shows indicate qualified attendees serious about a charter or yacht purchase. —Kathleen Turner, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025

Verb

Her boyfriend was hoping to raise over $227,000 to help charter a medical air ambulance back to Germany, since a normal flight was not her safest option. —Zoey Lyttle, People.com, 21 Apr. 2025

The Titanic’s owner, the White Star Line, chartered the Mackay-Bennett, a steamer normally used for repairing trans-Atlantic telegraph cables, to retrieve as many bodies as possible. —Greg Daugherty, Smithsonian Magazine, 14 Apr. 2025

Adjective

Charter school performance was uneven, but in at least 11 states charter fourth graders outperformed their non-charter counterparts in math in 2022, including in Alaska (+16 points), Nevada (+12 points) and North Carolina (+21 points). —The Editorial Board, WSJ, 24 Oct. 2022

At the time, billionaires Mike Bloomberg and the late Eli Broad spent tens of millions of dollars promoting charter schools nationally, including large sums in Oakland to support charter schools and to ensure pro-charter candidates were elected to the board. —Scott Wilson, Washington Post, 18 Sep. 2022

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

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

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2a

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adjective

1920, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing charter

• charter member
• charter school

Rhymes for charter

• arter
• barter
• darter
• garter
• martyr
• smarter
• starter
• tartar

Kids Definition

charter

1 of 3 noun

char·​ter ˈchärt-ər 

1

: an official document granting, guaranteeing, or showing the limits of the rights and duties of the group to which it is given

2

: a contract by which owners of a ship lease it to others

3

: a charter travel arrangement

charter

2 of 3 verb

1

: to grant a charter to

2

: to hire (as a ship or a bus) for temporary use

charterer

ˈchärt-ər-ər 

noun

charter

3 of 3 adjective

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

a charter flight

Legal Definition

charter

1 of 2 noun

char·​ter

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

charter

2 of 2 transitive verb

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

Etymology

Noun

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