entitlements

Cultural  

1. Federal programs, such as Social Security (see also Social Security), Medicare (see also Medicare) and Medicaid, that disburse money according to fixed formulas to citizens who fall into designated categories. Because entitlements do not require annual congressional appropriations, their cost tends to rise steadily and, in the view of some, out of control.

---

Example Sentences

"We have prepared all the rights and entitlements that must be given to the fallen soldiers. Among these is compensation from the United Nations," Agus said after attending Zulmi’s funeral.

From Barron's • Apr. 5, 2026

More than half of the calls have been about pay and other contractual entitlements while in the war zone.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 5, 2026

Pupils who already have the plans will be able to keep them until at least September 2029, when children will start to have their support entitlements reassessed at the end of primary school and GCSEs.

From BBC • Feb. 23, 2026

Any security mitigation, however, will bump up against the fact that those entitlements are what make agents so useful in the first place.

From Barron's • Jan. 22, 2026

We cut $255 billion in spending, including entitlements, in over 340 separate budget items.

From State of the Union Address by Clinton, William Jefferson