privilege

American  

[priv-uh-lij, priv-lij] / ˈprɪv ə lɪdʒ, ˈprɪv lɪdʒ /

noun

• privileges
  plural

1. 1. a right, immunity, or benefit enjoyed by a particular person or a restricted group of people beyond the advantages of most.

      Few people have access to the privileges of the very rich.

   2. the unearned and mostly unacknowledged societal advantage that a restricted group of people has over another group: male privilege;

      white privilege based on skin color;

      male privilege;

      children of privilege.

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

   It's a privilege of a senator to speak in Congress without danger of a libel suit.

3. a grant to an individual, corporation, etc., of a special right or immunity, under certain conditions.

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

   Synonyms:

   liberty, freedom, license

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

   We enjoy the privileges of a free people.

6. an advantage or source of pleasure granted to a person.

   It's my privilege to be here.

7. Stock Exchange. an option to buy or sell stock at a stipulated price for a limited period of time, including puts, calls, spreads, and straddles.

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verb (used with object)

• privileges,
  present (3rd person singular)
• privileged,
  past participle,  past
• privileging
  present participle

1. to grant a privilege to.

2. to exempt (usually followed byfrom ).

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

privilege British  

/ ˈprɪvɪlɪdʒ /

noun

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. any of the fundamental rights guaranteed to the citizens of a country by its constitution

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

   2. the right claimed by any of certain other functionaries to refuse to divulge information

      executive privilege

5. 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 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 call put spread straddle

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verb

1. to bestow a privilege or privileges upon

2. (foll by from) to free or exempt

Usage

Spelling tips for privilege The word privilege is hard to spell for two reasons. First, it is tempting to use an e in the place of one of the two is, as in privelege. Second, people often want to add a d after the g because of the way privilege is pronounced (priviledge). How to spell privilege: It's a privilege to have two eyes (Is) and legs. This helps remind you that privilege is spelled with two is and the final syllable does not have a d. 

Synonym Usage

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, gender, etc.: the prerogatives of a king; the prerogatives of management.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• privileger
  noun
• proprivilege
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• privileges
  plural

Participles

• privileging
  present
• privileged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• privilege
  simple
• privileges
  simple
• have privileged
  perfect
• has privileged
  perfect
• am privileging
  progressive
• are privileging
  progressive
• is privileging
  progressive
• have been privileging
  perfect progressive
• has been privileging
  perfect progressive

Past

• privileged
  simple
• had privileged
  perfect
• was privileging
  progressive
• were privileging
  progressive
• had been privileging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will privilege
  simple
• will have privileged
  perfect
• will be privileging
  progressive
• will have been privileging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of privilege

First recorded in 1125–75; (noun) Middle English; earlier privilegie, from Old French privilege, from Latin prīvilēgium originally, “a law (for or against an individual),” equivalent to prīvi- (combining form of prīvus “one's own, private”) + lēg- ( see legal) + -ium -ium; (verb) Middle English privilegen, from Middle French privilegier, from Medieval Latin prīvilēgiāre, derivative of prīvilēgium

Explanation

A privilege is a special advantage not enjoyed by everyone. If you're very snooty, you probably don't allow just anyone the privilege of being your friend. Privilege comes from Latin privilegium, meaning a law for just one person, and means a benefit enjoyed by an individual or group beyond what's available to others. Someone wealthy come from privilege. Someone with a library card has borrowing privileges. Privilege can also be used as a verb. If you are on a committee giving away scholarships, you'll have to decide whether to privilege students from poor backgrounds or the students with high test scores.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

privilege privileges privileged privileging

They often charge eye-popping fees, including “placement” or “management” fees of up to 5% just for the privilege of purchasing a stake, as well as fees on the fund’s performance of 20% or more.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

"The fundamental right to walk on demarcated footpaths shall override the privilege of a motorised vehicle," he declared.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

UFC Brazil reporter Evelyn Rodrigues wrote in the comments: “One of the kindest souls I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing through MMA. Rest in peace, Allan.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026

"I had the privilege of representing Vinny for more than 30 years, long before 'The Sopranos' made him a household name," Attermann said in a statement.

From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026

She spoke in a cultured accent of money and privilege.

From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein

But in an administration that privileges snarling visages, Witkoff is nearly universally described as “kind,” or “nice,” a quality he has used to good diplomatic effect.

From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026

In the decade preceding Xi, he noted, there was perhaps one such case—and even then, the official wasn’t imprisoned, but was merely stripped of privileges.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 9, 2026

People on an enterprise network have their identities managed so that they have the privileges they need, and are blocked from everything else.

From Barron's ● Jun. 2, 2026

They will want to win enough money to shore up future playing privileges on the "old world" circuit.

From BBC ● Apr. 30, 2026

Was she seriously risking her phone privileges again?

From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows

The company also fought Beasley Allen when the plaintiff firm hired a former J&J outside counsel to consult on the litigation, despite his access to privileged information.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026

Algorithmic mediation of the past means that the greatest weight will be given to what privileged institutions have already been able to preserve in the greatest numbers.

From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026

Yet right now, it belongs only to a privileged few.

From Slate ● Jul. 20, 2026

"I'm extremely grateful and privileged to have gone on the journey that I have been on as an England cricketer," said Knight.

From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026

I have no memory at all of that summer’s day, no privileged knowledge of whether that child succeeded in getting the watermelon into her mouth.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

A psychologist argues that privileging “authenticity” in the workplace can lead to bad outcomes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 16, 2026

For instance, Google has been accused of privileging its own products in search results, while Apple has been accused of charging some developers exorbitant fees to be listed in its App Store.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 4, 2023

Your organization has now filed a complaint against Harvard University for its policy of privileging legacies and the family members of donors in its admissions process.

From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2023

But she has no use for the term “cancel culture,” privileging, as it does, the person shamed by the red stamp of accusation, rather than the one who pipes up about wrongdoing.

From New York Times ● Apr. 23, 2023

The Dream thrives on generalization, on limiting the number of possible questions, on privileging immediate answers.

From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Related Words

• advantage
• allowance
• authority
• authorization
• benefit
• concession
• due
• entitlement
• exemption
• freedom
• immunity
• license
• opportunity
• prerogative
• right