Definition

1. Verb (transitive):
   • To give someone a legal or official right to have or do something.
   • To give a title, name, or designation to a book, film, piece of art, etc.

Usage

• To give a right or claim: This is the most common usage. It is often followed by "to" + a noun or "to" + a verb.
  • Structure: entitle someone to (something)
  • Example: Your years of service entitle you to a full pension.
  • Example: This ticket entitles the bearer to one free drink.
• To give a title or name: This usage is common in artistic and formal contexts.
  • Structure: entitle something (as) + Title
  • Example: She entitled her novel "Echoes of the Past."
  • Example: The sculpture was entitled "The Thinker."

Examples

• Giving a right:
  • Being a citizen entitles you to vote.
  • The warranty entitles you to a free repair.
  • The law entitles every employee to a safe working environment.
• Giving a title:
  • The artist has not yet entitled his latest painting.
  • He wrote a poem entitled "Ode to Autumn."

Advanced Usage

• Passive voice: Very common, especially with the "right" meaning.
  • You are entitled to your opinion. (Meaning: You have the right to hold your own opinion.)
  • Passengers are entitled to compensation for the delay.
• Formal/Legal Context: The word is frequently used in legal documents, policies, and formal announcements to specify rights.
  • The contract entitles the licensor to 10% of all royalties.

Variants and Related Words

• Entitlement (noun): The fact of having a right to something; a government benefit that qualified individuals have a legal right to receive.
  • Example: There is a debate about social security entitlements.
• Titled (adjective): Having a title of nobility.
  • Example: She comes from a titled family. (Note: This relates to a specific, less common meaning of "entitle" meaning to confer a noble title.)

Synonyms

• For "give a right": authorize, qualify, permit, allow, empower.
• For "give a title": name, call, title, designate, dub.

Related Phrases

• Feel entitled (to): (Idiomatic) To believe, often unreasonably, that one deserves special treatment or privileges.
  • Example: He feels entitled to success without putting in the work.
• Be entitled to: The standard phrase indicating possession of a right.
  • Example: Full-time employees are entitled to health insurance.

Notes on Meaning

The core idea of "entitle" is to provide with a title in a broad sense. This can be: 1. A legal title (a right or claim), or 2. A literal title (a name). The context always makes clear which meaning is intended.

Verb

1. give a title to someone; make someone a member of the nobility
2. give a title to
3. give the right to
   • The Freedom of Information Act entitles you to request your FBI file