rights 1 of 2

Definition of rightsnext
plural of right
1
as in privileges
something to which one has a just claim everyone has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in claims
an entitlement to something what right do you have to tell us what to do?

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

rights

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of right

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 rights
Noun
Anna, in a cardigan and a messy bun, has ordered a box of editions of The Ladder, a magazine launched in the fifties, published by the first lesbian-rights organization in the United States. Naaman Zhou, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026 Some politicians have even proposed invoking Article 7 of the Treaty of the EU, a legal measure that could revoke Hungary's voting rights in the bloc. ABC News, 6 Apr. 2026 The findings also align with what immigrant-rights advocates and immigration attorneys are seeing in real time. Seth Klamann, Denver Post, 6 Apr. 2026 The judge’s order cited two similar cases and ultimately sided with the woman who had Kyra the dog for the last couple of years, giving her full rights and denying her ex’s requests. Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2026 Call this his civil-rights derangement syndrome. Howard L. Simon, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Apr. 2026 The recent backlash against America’s LGBTQ+ rights movement has been mounting for a decade, according to Billy Huff, director of the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Gender and Sexuality Center. Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 5 Apr. 2026 Howard turned Mound Bayou into a sanctuary city for early voting-rights efforts. Beverly Gage, The Atlantic, 5 Apr. 2026 Dineen was then credited with working to secure the lodge's collective bargaining rights permanently through the Illinois Labor Relations Act of 1983. Adam Harrington, CBS News, 29 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rights
Noun
  • The result is that attackers already had the pairing privileges required to gain administrative control with no credentials required.
    Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 3 Apr. 2026
  • Blanche said the remaining records name women who accused Epstein of abuse, could hurt potential prosecutions or are protected under legal privileges.
    Kathryn Palmer, USA Today, 2 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • But Setrakian claimed California and Texas law protect public officials from defamation claims even in fundraising so long as the offending comments can be reasonably connected to his official duties.
    Will Swaim, Oc Register, 6 Apr. 2026
  • Extreme claims have circulated.
    Ronan Farrow, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • There are so many reasons to be mad; the mostly baseless and endless attacks on higher education, the dismantling of life-saving research, ICE, the subverting of policy that redresses shameful social harms.
    Wendy Nelson Espeland, Mercury News, 11 Feb. 2026
  • There are so many reasons to be mad; the mostly baseless and endless attacks on higher education, the dismantling of life-saving research, ICE, the subverting of policy that redresses shameful social harms.
    Wendy Nelson Espeland, Chicago Tribune, 3 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Surprise, surprise, JPMorgan Chase and other big banks survived this outrageous assault upon their prerogatives.
    John Cassidy, New Yorker, 16 Feb. 2026
  • The district judge declined her jurisdictional prerogatives, saying that the case was too serious to be settled in a magistrates’ court and must be heard by a Crown Court, which deals with the most severe criminal offenses.
    Rosa Lyster, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • Traditionally, Oscars hosts have been at their best when puncturing the pretensions of the stars in attendance, but for the most part, host Conan O’Brien bought into their sense of their own righteousness.
    Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 20 Mar. 2026
  • By the early 1950s, many clerics had come to see the Pahlavi monarchy, for all its secular pretensions, as a manageable partner.
    Bobby Ghosh, Time, 5 Mar. 2026
Verb
  • Once soil health improves, many gardeners find that digging individual planting holes is sufficient for establishing crops.
    Anthony Reardon, Kansas City Star, 4 Apr. 2026
  • That said, judgments can remain valid for years and may be renewed, so if your financial situation improves later, creditors could attempt to collect at that time.
    Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Nothing betters the gift of time.
    Brie Stimson , Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 9 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • This bundle remedies the common storage complaint by including a USB hub along with a 512GB SD card, giving you way more room for files than any other machine in this rundown.
    K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 20 Mar. 2026
  • Packing motion sickness remedies ahead of time is an easy way to avoid scrambling if the ship starts rocking.
    Rosie Marder, Travel + Leisure, 16 Mar. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Rights.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rights. Accessed 10 Apr. 2026.

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