ownership

noun

own·​er·​ship ˈō-nər-ˌship 

plural ownerships

1

: the state, relation, or fact of being an owner

Warhol died in 1987, and the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts assumed ownership of his work.

—Adam Liptak

… transfer of business and farm ownerships …

—The Columbian (Clark County, Washington) (online)

2

: a group or organization of owners

The sale, if approved by at least 75% of major league ownership, would value the team at $1.725 billion.

—Cale Clinton

3

: the quality or state of being accountable : responsibility

A successful candidate must settle all fines and costs owed to the society … and take full ownership for the conduct that led to their disciplinary hearing.

—Maggie McIntosh

The important thing in those situations is to promptly accept ownership of a misstep, do what's necessary to clean up the mess, and make the changes necessary to ensure it doesn't happen again.

—Danville (Virginia) Register & Bee

Examples of ownership in a Sentence

The company is under private ownership.

Recent Examples on the Web

After a period of wild and mostly erratic spending under Farhad Moshiri’s ownership left them in dire financial straits, the club are trying to rebuild cautiously under the Friedkin Group. —Oliver Kay, New York Times, 21 Sep. 2025

The lack of clarity is compounded by the fact that many of Turning Point’s largest vendors are limited liability companies registered in states that do not mandate public ownership disclosure. —Lily Mae Lazarus, Fortune, 20 Sep. 2025

The merger between Tegna and one of the largest local TV operators nationwide has prompted monopoly concerns, as the deal could increase Nexstar's local TV ownership to more than 39% of US households, Business Insider reported. —Anthony Robledo, USA Today, 20 Sep. 2025

Three years later, Witherspoon pleaded guilty to wire fraud charges stemming from his part ownership of another nursing school, Siena College of Health II in Lauderhill, that sold hundreds of phony diplomas and transcripts to students seeking to become licensed practical or registered nurses. —Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 20 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

owner + -ship

First Known Use

1583, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ownership

• cross-ownership
• home ownership

Rhymes for ownership

• authorship
• battleship
• censorship
• chairmanship
• chieftainship
• comradeship
• consulship
• craftsmanship
• dealership
• draftsmanship
• fellowship
• fingertip

Legal Definition

ownership

noun

own·​er·​ship

: the state, relation, or fact of being an owner

also : the rights or interests of an owner

— absolute ownership

: ownership especially by a single person that is free of any encumbrances or limitations other than statutory law compare fee simple absolute at fee simple

— ostensible ownership \ ä-​ˈsten-​sə-​bəl-​ \

: ownership that is apparent rather than actual and that sometimes is recognized in cases of purchase of the property by an innocent third party

a dispute arising from the dealer's ostensible ownership and sale of the collateral

Note: A purchaser from a person with ostensible ownership of property may be able to defeat the claim to the property of the actual owner who created the ostensible ownership.

— ownership in indivision

in the civil law of Louisiana : ownership by two or more persons each having undivided shares in the property as a whole compare community property at property

— qualified ownership

: ownership that is limited by time, the interest of another party, or restrictions on the use of the property

had only qualified ownership of the fish and game on his property due to state restrictions