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

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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

The selection also includes 100 bags, many of which are inspired by the archives of European fashion houses, that are exclusive to the retailer. ... — Suzanne Kapner, WSJ, "Saks Turns Prime Space Into a Handbag Emporium," 5 Feb. 2019 The company declined to comment on details of the arrangement with Amazon, but did confirm that their arrangement is not exclusive. — Kurt Wagner, Recode, "Facebook is audaciously launching a video gadget for your home, called Portal. Is that a good idea?," 8 Oct. 2018 The waivers will only last a year and are exclusive to the two companies. — James Osborne, Houston Chronicle, "Oil companies struggle to navigate Trump on steel tariffs," 13 July 2018 The Eagles had glitzy Super Bowl rings, and the real ones are exclusive to the team. — Zach Berman, Philly.com, "Doug Pederson won a golf bet to put the Eagles in home jerseys on the road | Early Birds," 4 July 2018 An extremely non-dress-code-compliant retro black polo colorway and matching shorts are exclusive to Palace. — Samuel Hine, GQ, "Rebel Streetwear Brand Palace Has Crashed Wimbledon," 3 July 2018 This problem is not exclusive to the current season of TV. — refinery29.com, "Record Scratch: Only 6% Of Your Favorite Shows Use Music Composed By Women," 1 July 2018 Her lab began turning up gene after gene once thought to be exclusive to complex animals—and seemingly unneeded in a solitary cell. — Elizabeth Pennisi, Science | AAAS, "The momentous transition to multicellular life may not have been so hard after all," 28 June 2018 Red White & Blue will be exclusive to the brewery and taproom, 1037 W. Juneau Ave., Powers said. — Kathy Flanigan, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Pabst is bringing back Red, White & Blue beer, but only at its downtown brewery and taproom," 26 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

What’s less clear, at least at the moment, is whether past Windows 10 Store exclusives will come to Steam as well. — Hayden Dingman, PCWorld, "Every future Xbox game Microsoft makes for PC will launch on Steam, too," 30 May 2019 Making a Murderer really initiated the idea in 2015 and streaming-service-exclusive shows such as Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, The Act, and Mindhunter have lured viewers away from cable. — Maude Campbell, Popular Mechanics, "The Time of True Crime," 26 Apr. 2019 Dell’s Mobile Connect software, once exclusive to Dell PCs and now available to all Windows PCs and Android phones, has already performed screen mirroring for about 15 months. — Mark Hachman, PCWorld, "Android phone mirroring arrives in new Windows 10 preview build 18356," 13 Mar. 2019 For the new issue of Hunger, Yara covers the magazine in a Chanel exclusive look styled by Jason Bolden and photographed by Jamie Nelson. — Alyssa Hardy, Teen Vogue, "Yara Shahidi Wears Chanel on the Cover of "Hunger"," 13 Mar. 2019 Luckily, eventually the show was recommissioned, and the resulting 10-episode third season is a Netflix exclusive. — Peter Bright, Ars Technica, "Get your binge on: Season 3 of sci-fi gem Travelers is out now," 14 Dec. 2018 Worse, this Verizon exclusive won’t work as a stand-alone phone. — Matthew Kitchen, WSJ, "The Beyond-Basic Phone that Made an Exec’s Life Better," 22 Feb. 2019 In a photo exclusive to PEOPLE, the girls can be seen proudly showing off their school reports to Jolie. — Mike Miller, PEOPLE.com, "How Angelina Jolie Spent Father's Day Amid Custody Drama with Brad Pitt," 18 June 2018 Its subject: how a talented Washington Post reporter pursued front-page exclusives during the Cold War. — Marvin Kalb, WSJ, "Five Best: Marvin Kalb on Memoirs of War Reporting," 11 Jan. 2019

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.