Definition of claimnext
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claim

2 of 2

noun

1
as in right
an entitlement to something I'm announcing my claim to that last slice of pizza

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in stake
a legal right to participation in the advantages, profits, and responsibility of something a shareholder has a claim in the business

Synonyms & Similar Words

3
4
as in request
something that someone insists upon having young children make great claims on their parents' time

Synonyms & Similar Words

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb claim contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of claim are demand, exact, and require. While all these words mean "to ask or call for something as due or as necessary," claim implies a demand for the delivery or concession of something due as one's own or one's right.

claimed the right to manage his own affairs

In what contexts can demand take the place of claim?

The synonyms demand and claim are sometimes interchangeable, but demand implies peremptoriness and insistence and often the right to make requests that are to be regarded as commands.

demanded payment of the debt

When would exact be a good substitute for claim?

The words exact and claim are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, exact implies not only demanding but getting what one demands.

exacts absolute loyalty

Where would require be a reasonable alternative to claim?

In some situations, the words require and claim are roughly equivalent. However, require suggests the imperativeness that arises from inner necessity, compulsion of law or regulation, or the exigencies of the situation.

the patient requires constant attention

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of claim
Verb
Suit claims excessive force, unlawful arrest Byers and Bailey did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment. — Theresa Clift, Sacbee.com, 19 Oct. 2026 The first version, dated September 30, 2026, claimed to show that all nontrivial zeros must be between 1/8 and 7/8, and was formally verified using the Lean programming language. — Quanta Magazine, 19 Oct. 2026
Noun
Trump made a similar claim on his own social media site earlier this month. — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 20 Oct. 2026 What to be skeptical of Convenience is the easiest claim to defend. — Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 20 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for claim
Recent Examples of Synonyms for claim
Verb
  • The administration insists its strategy of inflicting economic pain is working.
    — Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Putin has long insisted that Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which Russia has tried — and failed — to fully capture over more than four years of war have always been Russian.
    — Catherine Belton, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • These tests will measure how effectively the hardware handles demanding workloads, although HPE has not disclosed specific processing speeds or expected benchmark results.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Many Worlds demands that our universe actually be a multiverse.
    — Philipp Strasberg, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Cities outside Paris have been hit hard by the unrest, including Limoges where a fire nearly destroyed the 19th-century city hall.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Animal diseases also threaten our economy and food system, destroying more than 20% of global livestock production each year.
    — Robert Kelly, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Further research will be needed to determine how the motor behaves under different operating conditions and whether the principle can be incorporated into functional molecular technologies.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Authorities were assessing who else needed help, including many whose homes weren't flooded but were cut off by floodwaters.
    — MEAD GRUVER, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Many of his domestic critics have faulted him for prolonging the war in Gaza to appease his far-right allies, and for permitting ultra-Orthodox Jews to forgo military service to appease that sizable religious voter bloc.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Ellison fils’s most high-profile hiring decision was to enlist Bari Weiss—the former Times Opinion editor and founder of the center-right publication The Free Press—as editor-in-chief of CBS News.
    — Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Investors can buy and sell shares of the fund on the stock exchange, rather than having to secure a direct stake in those businesses.
    — Morgan Chittum, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Colossal owns a stake and licenses its technology to the startup.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • The battle — which escalated into a federal lawsuit filed Thursday by the Justice Department against the state, Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Logan — features striking assertions of official misconduct.
    — Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Data from container shipping market analysis firm Linerlytica supports the assertion of a traffic increase.
    — Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 14 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • The request, obtained by the Washington Examiner, came in a Wednesday letter from Mike Davis, founder and president of the Article III Project, a conservative legal advocacy group.
    — Kaelan Deese, The Washington Examiner, 22 Oct. 2026
  • It is held by an escrow agent, usually the title company or a broker, who is not permitted to hand it to either side on request.
    — Gary Singer, Sun Sentinel, 22 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Claim.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/claim. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

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