claim
Americanverb (used with object)
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claims,
present (3rd person singular)
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claimed,
past participle, past
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claiming
present participle
-
to demand by or as by virtue of a right; demand as a right or as due.
to claim an estate by inheritance.
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to assert and demand the recognition of (a right, title, possession, etc.); assert one's right to.
to claim payment for services.
-
to assert or maintain as a fact.
She claimed that he was telling the truth.
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to require as due or fitting.
to claim respect.
verb (used without object)
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claims,
present (3rd person singular)
-
claimed,
past participle, past
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claiming
present participle
noun
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claims
plural
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a demand for something as due; an assertion of a right or an alleged right.
He made unreasonable claims on the doctor's time.
- Synonyms:
- call, requisition, request
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an assertion of something as a fact.
He made no claims to originality.
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a right to claim or demand; a just title to something.
His claim to the heavyweight title is disputed.
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something that is claimed, especially a piece of public land for which formal request is made for mining or other purposes.
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a request or demand for payment in accordance with an insurance policy, a workers' compensation law, etc..
We filed a claim for compensation from the company.
idioms
verb
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to demand as being due or as one's property; assert one's title or right to
he claimed the record
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(takes a clause as object or an infinitive) to assert as a fact; maintain against denial
he claimed to be telling the truth
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to call for or need; deserve
this problem claims our attention
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to take
the accident claimed four lives
noun
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an assertion of a right; a demand for something as due
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an assertion of something as true, real, or factual
he made claims for his innocence
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a right or just title to something; basis for demand
a claim to fame
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to assert one's possession of or right to
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anything that is claimed, esp in a formal or legal manner, such as a piece of land staked out by a miner
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law a document under seal, issued in the name of the Crown or a court, commanding the person to whom it is addressed to do or refrain from doing some specified act former name writ 1
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a demand for payment in connection with an insurance policy, etc
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the sum of money demanded
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Usage
What does claim mean? To claim something is to maintain that the something is a fact, as in The company claims its product cures hiccups. A claim is the assertion of a fact, as in The claim that Shayna has a beautiful voice was proved when she began to sing. To claim is also to demand one’s right to something, such as to claim payment for a service given. As a noun, this claim can be the demand for that something, such as a claim on your time. Example: My ancestors laid claim to this land decades ago and I don't plan on letting it go any time soon.
Synonym Usage
See demand.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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claimernoun
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superclaimnoun
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misclaimverb (used with object)
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overclaimverb (used with object)
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preclaimverb (used with object)
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claimableadjective
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claimlessadjective
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nonclaimableadjective
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unclaimedadjective
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unclaimingadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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claimsimple
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claimssimple
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have claimedperfect
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has claimedperfect
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am claimingprogressive
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are claimingprogressive
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is claimingprogressive
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have been claimingperfect progressive
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has been claimingperfect progressive
Past
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claimedsimple
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had claimedperfect
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was claimingprogressive
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were claimingprogressive
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had been claimingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of claim
First recorded in 1250–1300; (verb) Middle English claimen, from Anglo-French, Old French claimer, from Latin clāmāre “to cry out”; (noun) Middle English, from Anglo-French, Old French cla(i)me; the noun is derivative of the verb
Explanation
When you express your right to something, you're making a claim to it, like telling your sister, "This bowl of cereal is mine." A claim is when you express your right to something that belongs to you, like your medical records or the deed to your home. When you make a claim or claim something, you're demanding it or saying it’s true. People claim dependents and deductions on their taxes. In court, you could claim you deserve money from an employer who cheated you. You could claim you can juggle chainsaws. With any kind of claim, you're going to have to prove it.
Vocabulary lists containing claim
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 1
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Argumentative Writing
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Soon after, a second law firm filed a similar claim on behalf of another 147 scam victims.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Haaretz, which has historically been a vocal critic of the prime minister, has stood by its reporting and rejected Netanyahu's defamation claim, saying its "sole purpose is to silence journalistic criticism".
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
Or they may regard a claim as too speculative to endorse or reject decisively.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 9, 2026
The court said "both sides bore equal responsibility for the breakdown of the marriage" and therefore granted the divorce but rejected Lee's claim for damages, she added.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
Before the waters could claim them all, Coyote presented the kidnapped infant back to Mother Water Monster.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
“We remain focused on handling claims with care, consistency and attention to each customer’s unique situation.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
In an austere look at the price of lies, Ms. Hüller plays a 17th-century European woman who first poses as a male soldier and then claims the inheritance of a dead man.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
"We reject the claims and will defend them vigorously before the tribunal."
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
Initial jobless claims eased 1,000 to 206,000 in the week ending Sept. 5.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
An athlete boasts that in Rhodes he performed the most astonishing jump and claims he can produce eyewitnesses to testify to it.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
Seahawks cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett claimed his first career interception at the start of the fourth quarter, after a Drake Maye pass was deflected by rookie Rodney Thomas.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
County Museum of Art with their names and claimed the space as Chicano art.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
Navy vessels — and eight oil tankers it claimed were attempting to pass through a “prohibited and unsafe” part of the Strait of Hormuz.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
Illnesses related to the dust and smoke from the collapse of the Twin Towers have claimed more lives than the attacks themselves, US health officials say.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
He claimed over and over that he did not mean it literally.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
An online gaming company challenged the seizure in court, claiming it owns the wallets and has no link to the scam.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Previously, they were emails or letters sent to website owners claiming they owned the copyright to photos used online, and asking for money to avoid legal action.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
Holmes founded Theranos in 2003 and became one of Silicon Valley’s most celebrated young entrepreneurs by claiming the company could perform a wide range of medical tests using only a few drops of blood.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
Eli Lilly's website carries a strong warning "no one should take anything claiming to be retatrutide outside of a Lilly-sponsored clinical trial".
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Family after family arrives, each claiming a decrepit ancestor amid high-decibel greetings.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
