disenfranchised

adjective

dis·​en·​fran·​chised ˌdis-in-ˈfran-ˌchīzd 

: deprived of some right, privilege, or immunity

Tough, resourceful, and determined to help her disenfranchised and disenchanted students learn how to learn and love it, Johnson employs a barrage of techniques.

—Donna Seaman

The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill does what it can, but the millions of mentally ill remain the least supported, the most disenfranchised, and the most excluded people in our society today.

—Oliver Sacks

especially : deprived of the right to vote

The value of the right to vote, however, given the reality of racial voting patterns, will depend on whether it translates into political power and influence for the previously disenfranchised minority.

—Alan Freeman

Examples of disenfranchised in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After four years of a Democrat in the White House, young men who feel disenfranchised were more open to hearing Trump out and voting for him. —Charles Trepany, USA TODAY, 21 Nov. 2024

Amid all this back and forth, meanwhile, the voices of the young people most directly affected by school board changes go unheard, entirely disenfranchised in the matter. —Guy Lodge, Variety, 19 Nov. 2024

The same year, Glasses applied for a program with Creative Futures Collective, which works to empower creatives from disenfranchised and underrepresented communities. —Booth Moore, WWD, 29 Oct. 2024

Under the Virginia constitution, felons are permanently disenfranchised, with the governor holding the right to allow former felons to vote. —Nina Turner, Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1818, in the meaning defined above