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.
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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:
Keller decided to fight, and she ended up getting the claim against her family property dropped.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
Lando Norris beat championship leader Kimi Antonelli to claim his second win in a row with victoy at the Dutch Grand Prix.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
Under the hot lights of the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, the five members of Santos Bravos stood center stage, ready to stake their claim to international stardom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026
Even if he fails in court, Cohen’s turnabout has muddied the case in the court of public opinion, letting Trump claim vindication.
From Slate ● Aug. 24, 2026
I remember mourning Grandma’s passing, wallowing in my sadness, only to come to Asamando and meet Ama—and to have her claim to be Grandma.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
"But the government has not established these grandiose claims are true," it adds.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
The study included Medicare claims and electronic health records from patients admitted to more than 5,500 skilled nursing facilities nationwide between 2017 and 2022.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 25, 2026
A house is usually the biggest sitting duck for estate-recovery claims.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
The group also claims to have obtained a playable build of the game and asks users for cryptocurrency donations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 25, 2026
It behooved them, therefore, to try to determine the legitimacy of the other claims.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
There are exceptions that can be claimed, and this is where the need for families to play defense comes in.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
It has been claimed the case may pave the way for a future parade on the road being permitted.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
Network Rail, which owns, operates, maintains and develops Britain's railways, claimed that the derailment occurred because the wagon had "not been maintained with reasonable care" by Touax.
From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026
At that same Hollywood Bowl concert, my friend turned to me in the lead-up to “All My Friends” and claimed it was the “best song ever made.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026
Mal scraped the jam pot clean, then stole some off Christopher’s plate and claimed she hadn’t.
From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell
On the undercard, Denmark's Melissa Mortensen became a world champion for the first time by claiming the vacant the WBA super-bantamweight title with a points win over Mexico's Mayelli Flores.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
But mining associations filed suit, claiming that the standards set by the government to measure compliance are too stringent.
From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026
Federal authorities will seek to deport Manuel Ernesto Hernandez-Umana, claiming he lied to cross the southern border in 2017.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
“So get them working early, claiming that income, and then deposit the matching amount,” she said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026
Despite they had dirty white handkerchiefs over their faces, Grandpa recognized them right off as the strangers who’d come in the store that morning claiming to be cotton buyers.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
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.
