have a say in
Idioms-
Also, have a voice in . Have the right or power to influence or make a decision about something. For example, I want to have a say in this matter , or Citizens want to have a voice in their local government . [c. 1600]
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have one's say . Express one's views, as in As soon as I've had my say I'll sit down . [Late 1600s]
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have the say . Be in command, as in The general has the say over which troops will be sent . [Early 1800s]
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.
Navy will have a say in how things unfold.
From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026
Others—including York, Clark’s enslaved manservant, and Sacagawea, a kidnapped Shoshone teenager pregnant with the child of the expedition’s interpreter, Charbonneau—did not have a say in the matter.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026
They also want a senior or former judge to chair the inquiry, and to have a say in their selection.
From BBC • Oct. 22, 2025
“One of the great things of being a captain is to have a say in how the course is set up.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 26, 2025
“After all,” Mom said, “I am your mother, and I should have a say in how you’re raised.”
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
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.
