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 movement

Examples of civil rights in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The move comes after civil rights organizations filed an emergency lawsuit against the Gwinnett County Board of Registrations and Elections last week over alleged issues with an out-of-state vendor. — Dan Raby, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026

The practice is not uncommon, but in a climate where federal officials have not ruled out sending federal troops to polls, some election officials and civil rights groups worry about the impact on voters. — Joe Wicke, Baltimore Sun, 2 Nov. 2026

Prop 45 has managed to garner support from the California and Hawaii chapter of the NAACP, which has been among one of the most vocal civil rights organizations to oppose data center developments across the US. — Justine Calma, The Verge, 1 Nov. 2026

Hays' efforts to find a solution to the controversy satisfied neither civil right activists nor intransigent segregationists. — Arkansas Online, 31 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

see civil

First Known Use

1660, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for civil rights

• acolytes
• ammonites
• amorites
• analytes
• andesites
• appetites
• argillites
• astrocytes
• belemnites
• bryophytes
• canaanites
• carmelites

Kids Definition

civil rights

plural noun

: the nonpolitical rights of a citizen

especially : the rights of personal liberty guaranteed to U.S. citizens by the 13th and 14th amendments to the Constitution and by acts of Congress