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What Does It Mean to Disenfranchise Someone?
Disenfranchise first appeared in English in the 17th century, preceded for a period of some 200 years by the now uncommon word disfranchise. Though both words are, rather obviously, related to franchise, they have nothing to do with that word’s current sense “a team that is a member of a professional sports league." The original meaning of franchise was “freedom from servitude or restraint.” Although disenfranchise does broadly signify depriving someone of any of a number of legal rights, it is most often used today of withholding the right to vote, or of the diminished social or political status of a marginalized group.
Examples of disfranchise in a Sentence
al, 5 Dec. 2022
Ignoring an express statutory deadline, the justices held that potential mail delays disfranchise voters and violate the state constitution’s guarantee of free and equal elections.
—Allysia Finley, WSJ, 1 Nov. 2020
The latest five-alarm fire in Washington is over a supposed plot to disfranchise voters centered on the United States Postal Service.
—The Editors, National Review, 17 Aug. 2020
By 1846, residents of Alexandria had grown irritated over being disfranchised, and political control of that area returned to Virginia.
—Jeff Barker, Washington Post, 13 Oct. 2019
Starting in the 1890s, Southern states advanced measures to disfranchise blacks, including literacy tests, poll taxes and grandfather clauses.
—Frank Scaturro, WSJ, 2 Feb. 2020
Dictionary Entries Near disfranchise
Cite this Entry
“Disfranchise.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disfranchise. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
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Legal Definition
disfranchise
transitive verb
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