droit

A sailor receives his droit for goods recovered at sea.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A legal right: "droit" refers to a legal right or entitlement, especially one recognized under common law or civil law systems.
   • A customary due: In historical or feudal contexts, "droit" can denote a customary payment, fee, or privilege owed to a lord or sovereign.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The defendant claimed a droit to the property based on inheritance. (A legal right to the property.)
  • Under feudal law, the lord held the droit to collect taxes from the villagers. (A customary due or privilege.)

Advanced Usage

• "droits of Admiralty": a historical term referring to the rights of the Crown or state to seize enemy ships and cargo during wartime, or to claim proceeds from such seizures.

  • The Admiralty court adjudicated the droits of Admiralty from the captured vessel. (Legal rights over enemy prizes.)

• "droit de seigneur": a supposed medieval right of a lord to have sexual relations with a vassal's bride on her wedding night (primarily a literary or historical concept).

  • The legend of the droit de seigneur appears in many historical novels, though its historical reality is debated. (A purported feudal privilege.)

Variants and Related Words

• Droits (n, plural): multiple legal rights or privileges.
  • The treaty granted certain droits to the merchant class. (Multiple legal entitlements.)

Synonyms

• Right: a moral or legal entitlement.
• Entitlement: a right to benefits or privileges.
• Privilege: a special right or advantage.

Related Idioms

• "by right (of droit)": by virtue of a legal claim.
  • He held the castle by droit of his noble ancestry. (By legal right of inheritance.)

Phrasal Verbs

• None directly associated with "droit" as a standalone noun; it is typically used in legal or historical phrases.