fran|chise

fran|chise «FRAN chyz», noun, verb, -chised, -chis|ing.

–n.

1. a privilege or right, granted by a government: »

The city grant the company a franchise to operate buses on the city streets.

2. the right to vote: »

The United States granted women the franchise in 1920.

3. a) the privilege, often exclusive, of selling the products of a manufacturer in a given area. »

The doughnut shop franchise was the ticket into the middle class for many hard-working storekeepers.

b) a business operated under a franchise agreement, often part of a chain.

4. a) the right to operate a team as part of a professional sports league. b) such a professional sports team: »

Until 1953, baseball's major league franchises pretty much stayed put in their home cities.

5. a recognized name or brand, especially in media or entertainment that establishes the template for a continuing series, or related works in the same style: »

J. K. Rowlings Harry Potter franchise may have as great a cultural impact as Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes.

6. »

Obsolete. an asylum; sanctuary.

–v.t.

1. to grant a franchise to or for: »

to franchise a retail outlet, a franchised car dealer. The brothers decided…to franchise the establishment of miniature tracks where the public could pay to take part in the racing [of] cars (London Times).

2. to set free; enfranchise.

╂[< Old French franchise freedom; frankness < franc free; see etym. under frank¹ (Cf. ↑frank)]