privilege

Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Financial, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

priv·i·lege

(prĭv′ə-lĭj, prĭv′lĭj)

a. A special advantage, immunity, permission, right, or benefit granted to or enjoyed by an individual, class, or caste. See Synonyms at right.

b. Such an advantage, immunity, or right held as a prerogative of status or rank, and exercised to the exclusion or detriment of others.

2. The principle of granting and maintaining a special right or immunity: a society based on privilege.

a. Protection from being forced to disclose confidential communications in certain relationships, as between attorney and client, physician and patient, or priest and confessor.

b. Protection from being sued for libel or slander for making otherwise actionable statements in a context or forum where open and candid expression is deemed desirable for reasons of public policy.

4. An option to buy or sell a stock, including put, call, spread, and straddle.

tr.v. priv·i·leged, priv·i·leg·ing, priv·i·leg·es

1. To grant a privilege to.

2. To free or exempt.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin prīvilēgium, a law affecting one person : prīvus, single, alone; see per in Indo-European roots + lēx, lēg-, law; see leg- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

privilege

(ˈprɪvɪlɪdʒ)

1. a benefit, immunity, etc, granted under certain conditions

2. the advantages and immunities enjoyed by a small usually powerful group or class, esp to the disadvantage of others: one of the obstacles to social harmony is privilege.

3. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) any of the fundamental rights guaranteed to the citizens of a country by its constitution

4. (Law)

a. the right of a lawyer to refuse to divulge information obtained in confidence from a client

b. the right claimed by any of certain other functionaries to refuse to divulge information: executive privilege.

5. (Parliamentary Procedure) the rights and immunities enjoyed by members of most legislative bodies, such as freedom of speech, freedom from arrest in civil cases during a session, etc

6. (Stock Exchange) stock exchange US a speculative contract permitting its purchaser to make optional purchases or sales of securities at a specified time over a limited period of time. See also call⁶¹, put²⁰, spread^24c, straddle⁹

vb (tr)

7. to bestow a privilege or privileges upon

8. (foll by from) to free or exempt

[C12: from Old French privilēge, from Latin prīvilēgium law relevant to rights of an individual, from prīvus an individual + lēx law]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

priv•i•lege

(ˈprɪv ə lɪdʒ, ˈprɪv lɪdʒ)

n., v. -leged, -leg•ing. n.

1. a right, immunity, or benefit enjoyed by a particular person or a restricted group of persons.

2. a special right, immunity, or exemption granted to persons in authority or office to free them from certain obligations or liabilities.

3. a grant of a special right or immunity, under certain conditions.

4. the principle or condition of enjoying special rights or immunities.

5. any of the rights common to all citizens under a modern constitutional government.

6. an advantage or source of pleasure granted to a person: It's my privilege to be here.

v.t.

7. to grant a privilege to.

8. to exempt (usu. fol. by from).

9. to authorize or license (something otherwise forbidden).

[1125–75; Middle English; earlier privilegie (< Old French privilege) < Latin prīvilēgium orig., a law for or against an individual =prīvi- (comb. form of prīvus one's own) + lēg- (see legal) + -ium -ium¹]

syn: privilege, prerogative refer to a special advantage or right possessed by an individual or group. A privilege is a right or advantage gained by birth, social position, effort, or concession. It can have either legal or personal sanction: the privilege of paying half fare; the privilege of calling whenever one wishes. prerogative refers to an exclusive right claimed and granted, often officially or legally, on the basis of social status, heritage, sex, etc.: the prerogatives of a king; the prerogatives of management.

privilege

box social - A social event at which boxes of food are auctioned to male bidders, who win the privilege of eating and dancing with the woman who prepared the box lunch.
privilege, prerogative - A privilege is a right that may be extended to a group or a number of people; a prerogative is a right that, customarily, is vested in a single person.
munity - A granted right or privilege.
prerogative - Comes from Latin praerogare, "ask before others," and came to mean "right to precedence, privilege."

privilege

Past participle: privileged
Gerund: privileging

Imperative
privilege
privilege

Present
I privilege
you privilege
he/she/it privileges
we privilege
you privilege
they privilege

Preterite
I privileged
you privileged
he/she/it privileged
we privileged
you privileged
they privileged

Present Continuous
I am privileging
you are privileging
he/she/it is privileging
we are privileging
you are privileging
they are privileging

Present Perfect
I have privileged
you have privileged
he/she/it has privileged
we have privileged
you have privileged
they have privileged

Past Continuous
I was privileging
you were privileging
he/she/it was privileging
we were privileging
you were privileging
they were privileging

Past Perfect
I had privileged
you had privileged
he/she/it had privileged
we had privileged
you had privileged
they had privileged

Future
I will privilege
you will privilege
he/she/it will privilege
we will privilege
you will privilege
they will privilege

Future Perfect
I will have privileged
you will have privileged
he/she/it will have privileged
we will have privileged
you will have privileged
they will have privileged

Future Continuous
I will be privileging
you will be privileging
he/she/it will be privileging
we will be privileging
you will be privileging
they will be privileging

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been privileging
you have been privileging
he/she/it has been privileging
we have been privileging
you have been privileging
they have been privileging

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been privileging
you will have been privileging
he/she/it will have been privileging
we will have been privileging
you will have been privileging
they will have been privileging

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been privileging
you had been privileging
he/she/it had been privileging
we had been privileging
you had been privileging
they had been privileging

Conditional
I would privilege
you would privilege
he/she/it would privilege
we would privilege
you would privilege
they would privilege

Past Conditional
I would have privileged
you would have privileged
he/she/it would have privileged
we would have privileged
you would have privileged
they would have privileged

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Noun	1.	privilege - a special advantage or immunity or benefit not enjoyed by all advantage, vantage - the quality of having a superior or more favorable position; "the experience gave him the advantage over me"
	2.	privilege - a right reserved exclusively by a particular person or group (especially a hereditary or official right); "suffrage was the prerogative of white adult males" exclusive right, prerogative, perquisite right - an abstract idea of that which is due to a person or governmental body by law or tradition or nature; "they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights"; "Certain rights can never be granted to the government but must be kept in the hands of the people"- Eleanor Roosevelt; "a right is not something that somebody gives you; it is something that nobody can take away" easement - (law) the privilege of using something that is not your own (as using another's land as a right of way to your own land) privilege of the floor - the right to be admitted onto the floor of a legislative assembly while it is in session
	3.	privilege - (law) the right to refuse to divulge information obtained in a confidential relationship right - an abstract idea of that which is due to a person or governmental body by law or tradition or nature; "they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights"; "Certain rights can never be granted to the government but must be kept in the hands of the people"- Eleanor Roosevelt; "a right is not something that somebody gives you; it is something that nobody can take away" attorney-client privilege - the right of a lawyer to refuse to divulge confidential information from his client informer's privilege - the right of the government to refuse to reveal the identity of an informer journalist's privilege - the right of a journalist to refuse to divulge sources of confidential information husband-wife privilege, marital communications privilege - neither spouse can divulge confidential communications from the other while they were married physician-patient privilege - the right of a physician to refuse to divulge confidential information from a patient without the consent of the patient priest-penitent privilege - the right of a clergyman to refuse to divulge confidential information received from a person during confession or similar exchanges law, jurisprudence - the collection of rules imposed by authority; "civilization presupposes respect for the law"; "the great problem for jurisprudence to allow freedom while enforcing order"
Verb	1.	privilege - bestow a privilege upon favour, favor countenance, permit, allow, let - consent to, give permission; "She permitted her son to visit her estranged husband"; "I won't let the police search her basement"; "I cannot allow you to see your exam"

privilege

noun

1. right, benefit, due, advantage, claim, freedom, sanction, liberty, concession, franchise, entitlement, prerogative, birthright The ancient powers and privileges of the House of Commons.

2. advantage, luxury, indulgence, affluence She was born into a life of privilege.

3. honour, pleasure, source of pleasure or pride or satisfaction It's been a privilege to meet you.

4. immunity, liberty, exemption, dispensation He will use parliamentary privilege to make this information public.

verb

1. favour, promote, spoil, side with, advance, smile upon, pull strings for, treat with partiality They are privileging a tiny number to the disadvantage of the rest.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

إمْتِيازاِمْتِيَاز

výsadaprávoprivilegium

privilegium

Privileg privilegieren

προνόμιο

privilegio

etuoikeus

privilège privilégier

privilegijaprivilegij

előny

forréttindi

privilegio privilegiare

特権

특권

lengvataprivilegijaprivilegijuotas

priekšrocībaprivilēģija

privilege

privilegium særrettighet

przywilej

privilégio

привилегия льгота

posebna pravicaprivilegij

privilegium

อภิสิทธิ์

ayrıcalık

đặc ân

特权

privilege

[ˈprɪvɪlɪdʒ]

A. N

1. (= prerogative) → privilegio m (Jur, Parl) → inmunidad f
members enjoy special privileges → los miembros gozan de privilegios especiales
as the oldest son, he has certain privileges → como hijo mayor tiene ciertos privilegios
that's your privilege → estás en tu derecho
to have parliamentary privilege → gozar de inmunidad parlamentaria

2. (= honour) → privilegio m, honor m
I had the privilege of meeting her → tuve el privilegio or el honor de conocerla

B. VT

1. (= favour) → privilegiar

2. to be privileged to do sth → tener el privilegio or el honor de hacer algo
I am privileged to call him a friend → tengo el privilegio or el honor de poder decir que es amigo mío

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

privilege

[ˈprɪvəlɪdʒ]

(= advantage) → privilège m

(= honour) → privilège m
It was a privilege to work with such a great actress → C'était un privilège que de travailler avec une aussi grande actrice.

vt (= favour) → privilégier

privilege

(= prerogative) → Privileg nt, → Sonderrecht nt; (= honour) → Ehre f; (Parl) → Immunität f; it’s a lady’s privilege → es ist das Vorrecht einer Dame

(Comput) → Zugriffsrecht nt

vt → privilegieren, bevorrechtigen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

privilege

[ˈprɪvɪlɪdʒ]

1. n → privilegio (Parliament) → prerogativa
I had the privilege of meeting her → ho avuto il privilegio or l'onore di incontrarla

2. vt to be privileged to do sth → avere il privilegio or l'onore di fare qc

privilege

(ˈprivəlidʒ) noun

(a) favour or right available, or granted, to only one person, or to a small number of people. Senior students are usually allowed certain privileges.

ˈprivileged adjective

privilege

→ اِمْتِيَاز privilegium privilegium Privileg προνόμιο privilegio etuoikeus privilège privilegija privilegio 特権 특권 privilege privilegium przywilej privilégio привилегия privilegium อภิสิทธิ์ ayrıcalık đặc ân 特权

privilege

n. privilegio, derecho.

References in classic literature ?

"No," said Prince Andrew, "my father did not wish me to take advantage of the privilege. I began the service from the lower grade."

View in context

"The institution of Senatorial Privilege enabled the Roman Republic to conquer the world.

View in context

This privilege of seeing woman eat is the earliest granted of those delicate animal intimacies, the fuller and fuller confiding of which plays not the least important part, and ever such a sweet one, even in a highly transcendental affection.

View in context

Now it is not residence which constitutes a man a citizen; for in this sojourners and slaves are upon an equality with him; nor will it be sufficient for this purpose, that you have the privilege of the laws, and may plead or be impleaded, for this all those of different nations, between whom there is a mutual agreement for that purpose, are allowed; although it very often happens, that sojourners have not a perfect right therein without the protection of a patron, to whom they are obliged to apply, which shows that their share in the community is incomplete.

View in context

This remark is not less applicable to a political privilege, or honor, or trust, than to any article of ordinary property.

View in context

TEE KITES of olden times, as well as the Swans, had the privilege of song.

View in context

Sabin said, "that I have that privilege. I see, however, that I am interrupting your game.

View in context

AS a preface is the only place where an author can with propriety explain a purpose or apologize for shortcomings, I venture to avail myself of the privilege to make a statement for the benefit of my readers.

View in context

It is no small privilege to dine with your Excellency."

View in context

I have sometimes thought that people who have this rare privilege do not appreciate it as they should.

View in context

Through the kindness of Dorothy Gale of Kansas, afterward Princess Dorothy of Oz, an humble writer in the United States of America was once appointed Royal Historian of Oz, with the privilege of writing the chronicle of that wonderful fairyland.

View in context

A veritable witness have you hitherto been, Ishmael; but have a care how you seize the privilege of Jonah alone; the privilege of discoursing upon the joists and beams; the rafters, ridge-pole, sleepers, and under-pinnings, making up the frame-work of leviathan; and belike of the tallow-vats, dairy-rooms, butteries, and cheeseries in his bowels.