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• franklin
  franklin

  noun

  (in the 14th and 15th centuries) a freeholder who was not of noble birth.
• Franklin
  Franklin

  noun

  Aretha 1942–2018, U.S. singer.

franklin

¹ American  

[frangk-lin] / ˈfræŋk lɪn /

noun

English History.

• franklins
  plural

1. (in the 14th and 15th centuries) a freeholder who was not of noble birth.

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Franklin ² American  

[frangk-lin] / ˈfræŋk lɪn /

noun

1. Aretha 1942–2018, U.S. singer.

2. Benjamin, 1706–90, American statesman, diplomat, author, scientist, and inventor.

3. Sir John, 1786–1847, English Arctic explorer.

4. John Hope, 1915–2009, U.S. historian and educator.

5. a district in extreme N Canada, in the Northwest Territories, including the Boothia and Melville peninsulas, Baffin Island, and other Arctic islands. 549,253 sq. mi. (1,422,565 sq. km).

6. a town in S Massachusetts.

7. a city in SE Wisconsin.

8. a town in central Tennessee.

9. a town in central Indiana.

10. a town in SW Ohio.

11. a male given name: from a Germanic word meaning “freeholder.”

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Franklin ¹ British  

/ ˈfræŋklɪn /

noun

1. Aretha (əˈriːθə) born 1942, US soul, pop, and gospel singer; noted for her songs "Respect" (1967), "I Say a Little Prayer" (1968), and, with George Michael, "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" (1987)

2. Benjamin 1706–90, American statesman, scientist, and author. He helped draw up the Declaration of Independence (1776) and, as ambassador to France (1776–85), he negotiated an alliance with France and a peace settlement with Britain. As a scientist, he is noted particularly for his researches in electricity, esp his invention of the lightning conductor

3. Sir John . 1786–1847, English explorer of the Arctic: lieutenant-governor of Van Diemen's Land (now Tasmania) (1836–43): died while on a voyage to discover the Northwest Passage

4. Rosalind . 1920–58, British x-ray crystallographer. She contributed to the discovery of the structure of DNA, before her premature death from cancer

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franklin ² British  

/ ˈfræŋklɪn /

noun

1. (in 14th- and 15th-century England) a substantial landholder of free but not noble birth

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Franklin ¹ Scientific  

/ frăngk′lĭn /

1. American public official, scientist, inventor, and writer who fully established the distinction between negative and positive electricity, proved that lightning and electricity are identical, and suggested that buildings could be protected by lightning conductors. He also invented bifocal glasses, established the direction of the prevailing storm track in North America and determined the existence of the Gulf Stream.

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Franklin ² Scientific  

1. British x-ray crystallographer whose diffraction images, made by directing x-rays at DNA, provided crucial information that led to the discovery of its structure as a double helix by Francis Crick and James D. Watson.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• franklins
  plural

Etymology

Origin of franklin

1250–1300; Middle English fra ( u ) nkelin < Anglo-French fraunclein, equivalent to fraunc free, frank ¹ + -lein -ling ¹; formed on the model of Old French chamberlain chamberlain

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

franklin Franklin franklins

Who the heck cares that you live in oakland ho ho kus or franklin lakes!!!

From New York Times ● Mar. 19, 2010

Restorer of Faith Shirley franklin isn't standard mayor material.

From Time Magazine Archive

With reporting by Eric Ferkenhoff Shirley Franklin / Atlanta Restorer of Faith Shirley franklin isn't standard mayor material.

From Time Magazine Archive

And while I was splashing in the pool, a franklin came running from his field with his hoe, waving wildly to me.

From A King's Comrade A Story of Old Hereford by Charles W. (Charles Watts) Whistler

Franklin, a freeholder, Anglo-Fr. frankelein— "How called you your franklin, Prior Aylmer?"

From The Romance of Names by Ernest Weekley

She revealed that the country star gave her the keys to their sprawling Franklin, Tenn., property because he knows “how special it is” to her.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026

The Camp David property - set deep in Catoctin Mountain Park in Frederick County, Maryland - was first taken over as a retreat by President Franklin Roosevelt, who nicknamed it "Shangri-La".

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

School board member Rocio Rivas, who represents Franklin and whose son attends the school, was not immediately available to comment Wednesday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

“That human interaction—the word-of-mouth,” Franklin said, “that is the key in Pennsylvania’s outbreak right now. It’s not twisting arms.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

In the Aurora, Benjamin Franklin Bache reprinted the old charge that Washington had been a traitor who conspired with the English government during the war.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

But most solemn of all was the vow the King made to his folk, warriors and franklins alike, when he swore by the dew, the eagle's path, and the valour of Thor.

From The Path of the King by John Buchan

The gentlemen, in their turn, called on the franklins, a lower order of gentry, and upon the peasants; and thus the whole force of the kingdom was assembled in one array.

From Composition-Rhetoric by Stratton D. Brooks

The noblemen, or, more justly speaking, the franklins, alone defended the country against foreign invasions.

From The Village Notary by J?zsef E?tv?s

Many magnates or sons of prominent franklins had fared to Canute on various errands; but all who came to King Canute were given their hands full of wealth.

From Canute the Great The Rise of Danish Imperialism during the Viking Age by Laurence Marcellus Larson

Country franklins got their wains out of our way with mighty confusion, and coaches drew aside for us to pass, and roadside brats scampered off with a scream of freebooters; but M. Radisson only laughed.

From Heralds of Empire Being the Story of One Ramsay Stanhope, Lieutenant to Pierre Radisson in the Northern Fur Trade by Agnes C. (Agnes Christina) Laut