exclusive

adjective

ex·clu·sive | \ ik-ˈsklü-siv,

-ziv\

Definition of exclusive

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : excluding or having power to exclude

b : limiting or limited to possession, control, or use by a single individual or group

2a : excluding others from participation

b : snobbishly aloof

3a : accepting or soliciting only a socially restricted patronage (as of the upper class)

b : stylish, fashionable

c : restricted in distribution, use, or appeal because of expense

4a : single, sole exclusive jurisdiction

b : whole, undivided his exclusive attention

exclusive

noun

Definition of exclusive (Entry 2 of 2)

: something exclusive: such as

a : a news story at first released to or reported by only one source

b : an exclusive right (as to sell a particular product in a certain area)

Other Words from exclusive Synonyms & Antonyms Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about exclusive

Keep scrolling for more

Synonyms & Antonyms for exclusive

Synonyms: Adjective

single, sole, unshared

Antonyms: Adjective

nonexclusive

Did You Know?

In words such as expel, export, and exclusive, the prefix ex- means "out of, outside". Thus, to exclude means basically to close the door in order to keep someone or something out. When the word appears in an advertisement, it's often making an appeal to snobs. An "exclusive" offer is supposedly made to only a few people; not so many years ago, "exclusive" housing developments excluded those of a certain race or color. If a product is being sold exclusively by one store, you won't be able to find it anywhere else. When a newspaper or news show has an exclusive, it's a story that no one else has yet reported. Exclusive's antonym is inclusive; an inclusive policy, an inclusive church, or an inclusive approach is one that aims to include as many people as possible.

Examples of exclusive in a Sentence

Adjective

He belongs to an exclusive club. She attended an exclusive private school. one of the city's most exclusive restaurants They gave their exclusive attention to the job.

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

As fans pointed out on Twitter, Ariana joins a relatively exclusive group of women with No. 1 single debuts. — Claire Dodson, Teen Vogue, "Ariana Grande Is the First Woman Since Adele to Debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100," 12 Nov. 2018 These two firms are among the exclusive group of hedge funds that have posted a steady stream of profits even as the industry continues an extended drought. — Juliet Chung, WSJ, "Stalwart Hedge Funds Test Their Clout With Clients," 30 Oct. 2018 The film is threaded with reflective interviews, and framed by scenes of the retiree’s daily life, as a member of one of the most exclusive clubs: the dozen people who’ve walked on the Moon. — Noel Murray, The Verge, "Netflix’s Last Man on the Moon is a perfect bookend for First Man," 12 Oct. 2018 Four Seasons Hotel Houston Walking into the Four Seasons is like stepping into an exclusive club that has been around for ages. — Diana Oates, Condé Nast Traveler, "10 Best Hotels in Houston," 9 Oct. 2018 Somewhere between Gisele Bündchen’s Instagrams from the exclusive Yellowstone Club, and Justin Timberlake’s Man of the Woods moment last year, the Treasure State started to re-enter the collective consciousness. — Todd Plummer, Vogue, "Bozeman, Butte, Big Sky, and Back: The Ultimate Southwest Montana Road Trip," 31 Aug. 2018 Want to join an exclusive club that allegedly counts Bill Gates and Warren Buffet as members? — Caroline Judelson, Fox News, "McDonald's offering chance to win McGold Card, free food for life," 9 Aug. 2018 His 20 wins allowed Richard to join a group known as the Black Aces, an organization founded by Mudcat Grant, which was an exclusive group for black pitchers with 20-plus win seasons. — Shaun Goodwin, kansascity, "From baseball All-Star to homeless to minister: J.R. Richard's journey," 9 June 2018 There are tons of exclusive interviews with casts and crews of various shows. — Stacey Grant, Seventeen, "14 Outrageous Facts About Nickelodeon Slime," 10 Dec. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Kiwami The Yakuza games, long a PlayStation exclusive, started trickling onto PC this past summer with the release of Yakuza 0. — Hayden Dingman, PCWorld, "This week in games: Obsidian teases a game reveal, the FTC pledges to look into loot boxes," 30 Nov. 2018 Sponsored video Watch our exclusive sponsored video for great gift ideas this Holiday season! — Discover Magazine, "Holiday Gift Guide," 24 Nov. 2018 There are a few games that only come out on Xbox, PS4, or Nintendo Switch, but the biggest titles are usually available on a PC, plus other non-console exclusives. — Alexander George, Popular Mechanics, "How To Get Into the High-Powered World of Gaming PCs," 20 Sep. 2018 Going for the Gold The WarioWare franchise began when WarioWare: Mega Microgame$ launched in 2003 as a Game Boy Advance exclusive with a wild sales pitch: one cartridge would include hundreds of games... but each lasts no more than five seconds. — Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, "WarioWare Gold: A fine example of Nintendo’s weird “end of life” history," 3 Aug. 2018 But today, Jenner was back on her catwalk game in Paris as an exclusive at Givenchy, one of the most coveted runway shows of the season—sharing the spotlight with superstars like Karen Elson, Mariacarla Boscono and Natasha Poly. — Chrissy Rutherford, Harper's BAZAAR, "Is Kendall Jenner the Next Top Model?," 2 Mar. 2014 Along with changes to the point earning experience, Allure also reports that Sephora plans to offer additional Insider exclusives throughout their stores. — Lauren Rearick, Teen Vogue, "Sephora Announced Changes to Its Beauty Insider Program," 9 Aug. 2018 The Roku Premiere player costs $39, and the Premiere+ costs $49 and will be a Walmart exclusive. — Valentina Palladino, Ars Technica, "New Roku Premiere devices make 4K HDR streaming as affordable as $39," 24 Sep. 2018 The copper color will be a GameStop exclusive in the US for launch. — Nick Statt, The Verge, "Sony adds four new brightly colored PlayStation 4 controller options," 20 Aug. 2018

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