equal opportunity

American  

noun

equal opportunities plural

1. the aggregation of policies and practices in employment and other areas that do not discriminate against people on the basis of race, skin color, age, sex, gender, national origin, religion, or mental or physical disability.

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equal opportunity British  

noun

1. 1. the offering of employment, pay, or promotion equally to all, without discrimination as to sex, race, colour, disability, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      our equal-opportunity policy

      an equal-opportunities employer

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equal opportunity Cultural  

1. The goal of giving all persons an equal chance to an education and employment, and to protect their civil rights, regardless of their race, religious beliefs, or gender. In the United States, various minority groups have been fighting for equal opportunity over the last 150 years. (See affirmative action, civil rights movement, equal protection of the laws, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, National Organization for Women, segregation, sexism, suffragist, and women's movement.)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• equal-opportunity
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• equal opportunities
  plural

Example Sentences

Without equal citizenship, equal voting rights, and equal opportunity to elect representatives of one’s choice, republican government was an impossibility.

From Slate • Jun. 3, 2026

Section 2 guarantees that minorities have an equal opportunity “to participate in the political process and to elect representatives of their choice.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026

"To give equal opportunity, sometimes you need to inject," said Arsenal manager Renee Slegers.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

Rice, no protofeminist, was an equal opportunity misanthrope in “The Adding Machine.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 18, 2026

Class contradicts their assumptions about the American dream, equal opportunity, and the reasons for their own successes and even failures.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times

Related Words

• civil rights
• coordination
• fairness
• identity
• impartiality
• parity
• tolerance