have a right to

Idioms  

1. Have a just or legal claim on something or on some action, as in The accused has a right to legal counsel. The related have the right to is often used with infinitives, as in You have the right to remain silent. [Late 1300s] The antonym, dating from the mid-1600s, is have no right to, as in He has no right to push you aside. Also see in the right.

---

Example Sentences

But insisting that women have a right to feel happy in our own skin?

From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026

Americans have a right to know the extent of the military’s influence on the shows and films they consume.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Parents, it concluded, have a right to “direct the upbringing and education of their children” as they see fit.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 3, 2026

"You have a right to be offended but also there needs to be a level of understanding deeper than the surface level of Tourette's as an involuntary disability."

From BBC • Feb. 27, 2026

“Tell me, Dad. How much? I feel like I have a right to know.”

From "Red Kayak" by Priscilla Cummings