disenfranchised
Học thuậtThân thiện
The disenfranchised citizens gathered peacefully outside the government building.
Definition
- Adjective:
- Deprived of rights or privileges, especially the right to vote: The primary meaning of "disenfranchised" describes a person or group that has been systematically denied certain legal rights, powers, or privileges, most commonly the right to vote in public elections. It implies a loss or withholding of a fundamental aspect of citizenship.
- Made to feel powerless or excluded: In a broader social or economic context, it can describe individuals or communities who are marginalized, lack influence, or are excluded from participating fully in society.
Usage
- The adjective "disenfranchised" is typically used to describe groups of people (e.g., ). It often appears in political, social, and historical discussions about rights and equality.
- It can be used attributively (before a noun) or predicatively (after a linking verb like or ).
Examples
- Attributive use (before a noun):
- The new law aimed to protect disenfranchised voters.
- The government failed to address the needs of disenfranchised communities.
- Predicative use (after a linking verb):
- After the controversial policy change, many citizens felt disenfranchised.
- For decades, that entire population was disenfranchised and had no political voice.
Advanced Usage
- "The disenfranchised" (used as a plural noun): Refers collectively to people who are deprived of rights.
- The candidate promised to fight for the disenfranchised.
- Conceptual extension: While primarily about legal rights like voting, the term is often extended to describe feelings of exclusion in workplaces, organizations, or social systems.
- Young employees often feel disenfranchised by the company's top-down decision-making process.
Variants and Related Words
- Disenfranchise (verb): To deprive someone of a right or privilege.
- The regime sought to disenfranchise its political opponents.
- Disenfranchisement (noun): The state of being disenfranchised; the action of disenfranchising.
- The history of voter disenfranchisement is long and complex.
Synonyms
- Disqualified: Declared ineligible, often for a specific right or activity.
- Marginalized: Treated as insignificant or peripheral, pushed to the edge of society.
- Voiceless: Lacking the power or means to express one's interests or influence decisions.
Antonyms
- Enfranchised: Endowed with the rights of citizenship, especially the right to vote.
- Empowered: Given the authority or power to do something; made stronger and more confident.
- Privileged: Having special rights, advantages, or immunities.
Related Phrases and Concepts
- Voter suppression: Activities that make it harder for eligible voters to cast their ballots, a key mechanism of disenfranchisement.
- Civil rights: The rights of citizens to political and social freedom and equality, the denial of which leads to disenfranchisement.
- Political alienation: The feeling of being isolated or estranged from the political process, closely related to feeling disenfranchised.
The disenfranchised citizens gathered peacefully outside the government building.
Adjective
- deprived of the rights of citizenship especially the right to vote
- labor was voiceless
- disenfrenchised masses took to the streets