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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

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

From Time Magazine Archive

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

From Time Magazine Archive

Any procession day in the age of Edward you can meet, in Westminster Abbey, near the royal shrines and tombs, Chaucer's franklin, or country gentleman, with his red face and white beard.

From Old and New London Volume I by Walter Thornbury

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

From The Romance of Names by Ernest Weekley

The four new matches raise the number of Franklin expedition sailors identified through DNA to six.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 10, 2026

The record executive was a pioneer of the music industry who was instrumental in signing and developing artists including Franklin, Pink Floyd, Janis Joplin, Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith, Billy Joel, Whitney Houston and Alicia Keys.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2026

Few would have guessed that Abraham Lincoln, or Franklin Roosevelt, or Ronald Reagan were capable of unifying Americans as they did, so it would be a mistake to say it isn’t possible.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

The pair, Franklin and Nigel, moved into Catnip Coalition a month after opening.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026

Communication with the ships in the Arctic took months at best, and at first, the lack of word either from or about Franklin and his men did not set off national alarm.

From "Shipwrecked!" by Martin W. Sandler

As it was, she had a real affection for the antiquated place, with its curiously-carved door-knocker, its oaken staircase, and broad chimneys with their heavy franklins.

From The Sea-Witch Or, the African Quadroon : a Story of the Slave Coast by Maturin Murray Ballou

I saw one or two of Elfric's housecarls among them, and the rest were the sheriff's own men, with a few franklins who had joined him on the road.

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

Then at either end of the hall were cross tables, where the thanes and their ladies had their places in due order, above the franklins whose cross tables were next to those of the house-carles.

From A Prince of Cornwall A Story of Glastonbury and the West in the Days of Ina of Wessex by Charles W. (Charles Watts) Whistler

"Ay, but," said Wamba, "your chivalrous excellency will find there are more fools than franklins among us."

From Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott

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