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
Lydon, who served as a Peruvian missionary with the pope during the 1990s, recalled his friend collecting signatures on petitions urging an end to human rights violations under an authoritarian regime.
—
Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026
Critics say the club is a vehicle for ‘sportswashing’ Qatar’s poor human rights record.
—Tomás Hill López-Menchero, New York Times, 5 May 2026
America’s refusal dates back to the nineteen-nineties; considering this, the current Administration’s actions can be seen only as a shameful continuation of our country’s failure to respect human rights, even on its own soil.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
The Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who is currently serving an 18-year prison sentence in Iran, has been hospitalized in critical condition after collapsing and losing consciousness in jail.
—Anastasia Tsioulcas, NPR, 2 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for human rights
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 6 May 2026
Critics say the club is a vehicle for ‘sportswashing’ Qatar’s poor human rights record.
—Tomás Hill López-Menchero, New York Times, 5 May 2026
America’s refusal dates back to the nineteen-nineties; considering this, the current Administration’s actions can be seen only as a shameful continuation of our country’s failure to respect human rights, even on its own soil.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
The Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who is currently serving an 18-year prison sentence in Iran, has been hospitalized in critical condition after collapsing and losing consciousness in jail.
—Anastasia Tsioulcas, NPR, 2 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for human rights
Cite this Entry
“Human rights.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/human%20rights. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
