human rights

plural noun

: rights (such as freedom from unlawful imprisonment, torture, and execution) regarded as belonging fundamentally to all persons

Examples of human rights in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

It's supposed to be a sweeping and constructive process, akin to holding up a mirror to governments to improve their human rights policies. — ABC News, 10 Nov. 2026

The aim is to ensure that every country, however powerful, undergoes a peer review of its human rights record. — Imogen Foulkes, NPR, 10 Nov. 2026

It’s supposed to be a sweeping and constructive process, akin to holding up a mirror to governments to improve their human rights policies. — Jamey Keaten, Los Angeles Times, 10 Nov. 2026

His work spans from human rights documentation to security and military developments in and related to Iran. — Khosro Isfahani, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Nov. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1629, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for human rights

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

Legal Definition

human rights

noun plural

: rights (as freedom from unlawful imprisonment, torture, and execution) regarded as belonging fundamentally to all people