Adjacent Words

Claim definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

CLAIM, v.t.
1. To call for; to ask or seek to obtain, by virtue of authority, right or supposed right; to challenge as a right; to demand as due; as, to claim a debt; to claim obedience, or respect.
2. To assert, or maintain as a right; as, he claims to be the best poet of the age.
3. To have a right or title to; as, the heir claims the estate by descent; he claims a promise.
4. To proclaim.
5. To call or name.
CLAIM, n.
1. A demand of a right or supposed right; a calling on another for something due, or supposed to be due; as a claim of wages for services. A claim implies a right or supposed right in the claimant to something which is in anothers possession or power. A claim may be made in words, by suit, and by other means. The word is usually preceded by make or lay; to make claim; to lay claim.
2. A right to claim or demand; a title to any debt, privilege or other thing in possession of another; as, a prince has a claim to the throne.
Homers claims to the first rank among Epic poets have rarely been disputed.
3. The thing claimed, or demanded.
4. A loud call.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an assertion of a right (as to money or property); "his claim asked for damages"
2: an assertion that something is true or factual; "his claim that he was innocent"; "evidence contradicted the government's claims"
3: demand for something as rightful or due; "they struck in support of their claim for a shorter work day"
4: an informal right to something; "his claim on her attentions"; "his title to fame" [syn: claim, title]
5: an established or recognized right; "a strong legal claim to the property"; "he had no documents confirming his title to his father's estate"; "he staked his claim" [syn: title, claim]
6: a demand especially in the phrase "the call of duty" [syn: call, claim] v
1: assert or affirm strongly; state to be true or existing; "He claimed that he killed the burglar" [ant: disclaim]
2: demand as being one's due or property; assert one's right or title to; "He claimed his suitcases at the airline counter"; "Mr. Smith claims special tax exemptions because he is a foreign resident" [syn: claim, lay claim, arrogate] [ant: forego, forfeit, forgo, give up, throw overboard, waive]
3: ask for legally or make a legal claim to, as of debts, for example; "They claimed on the maximum allowable amount"
4: lay claim to; as of an idea; "She took credit for the whole idea" [syn: claim, take] [ant: disclaim]
5: take as an undesirable consequence of some event or state of affairs; "the accident claimed three lives"; "The hard work took its toll on her" [syn: claim, take, exact]

Merriam Webster's

I. transitive verb Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French claimer, clamer, from Latin clamare to cry out, shout; akin to Latin calare to call — more at low Date: 14th century 1. a. to ask for especially as a right <claimed the inheritance> b. to call for ; require <this matter claims our attention> c. take 16b <the accident claimed her life> 2. to take as the rightful owner <went to claim their bags at the station> 3. a. to assert in the face of possible contradiction ; maintain <claimed that he'd been cheated> b. to claim to have <organization…which claims 11,000…members — Rolling Stone> c. to assert to be rightfully one's own <claimed responsibility for the attack> Synonyms: see demand • claimable adjective II. noun Date: 14th century 1. a demand for something due or believed to be due <an insurance claim> 2. a. a right to something; specifically a title to a debt, privilege, or other thing in the possession of another b. an assertion open to challenge <a claim of authenticity> 3. something that is claimed; especially a tract of land staked out

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. & n. --v.tr. 1 a (often foll. by that + clause) demand as one's due or property. b (usu. absol.) submit a request for payment under an insurance policy. 2 a represent oneself as having or achieving (claim victory; claim accuracy). b (foll. by to + infin.) profess (claimed to be the owner). c assert, contend (claim that one knows). 3 have as an achievement or a consequence (could then claim five wins; the fire claimed many victims). 4 (of a thing) deserve (one's attention etc.). --n. 1 a a demand or request for something considered one's due (lay claim to; put in a claim). b an application for compensation under the terms of an insurance policy. 2 (foll. by to, on) a right or title to a thing (his only claim to fame; have many claims on my time). 3 a contention or assertion. 4 a thing claimed. 5 a statement of the novel features in a patent. 6 Mining a piece of land allotted or taken. Phrases and idioms: no claim (or claims) bonus a reduction of an insurance premium after an agreed period without a claim under the terms of the policy. Derivatives: claimable adj. claimer n. Etymology: ME f. OF claime f. clamer call out f. L clamare

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Claim Claim, v. i. To be entitled to anything; to deduce a right or title; to have a claim. We must know how the first ruler, from whom any one claims, came by his authority. --Locke.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Claim Claim, n. [Of. claim cry, complaint, from clamer. See Claim, v. t.] 1. A demand of a right or supposed right; a calling on another for something due or supposed to be due; an assertion of a right or fact. 2. A right to claim or demand something; a title to any debt, privilege, or other thing in possession of another; also, a title to anything which another should give or concede to, or confer on, the claimant. ``A bar to all claims upon land.'' --Hallam. 3. The thing claimed or demanded; that (as land) to which any one intends to establish a right; as a settler's claim; a miner's claim. [U.S. & Australia] 4. A loud call. [Obs.] --Spenser To lay claim to, to demand as a right. ``Doth he lay claim to thine inheritance?'' --Shak.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Claim Claim (kl[=a]m), v.?. [imp. & p. p. Claimed (kl[=a]md); p. pr. & vb. n. Claiming.] [OE. clamen, claimen, OF. clamer, fr. L. clamare to cry out, call; akin to calare to proclaim, Gr. ? to call, Skr. kal to sound, G. holen to fetch, E. hale haul.] 1. To ask for, or seek to obtain, by virtue of authority, right, or supposed right; to challenge as a right; to demand as due. 2. To proclaim. [Obs.] --Spenser. 3. To call or name. [Obs.] --Spenser. 4. To assert; to maintain. [Colloq.]

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(claims, claiming, claimed) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. If you say that someone claims that something is true, you mean they say that it is true but you are not sure whether or not they are telling the truth. He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him... A man claiming to be a journalist threatened to reveal details about her private life... 'I had never received one single complaint against me,' claimed the humiliated doctor... He claims a 70 to 80 per cent success rate. = maintain VERB: V that, V to-inf, V with quote, V n 2. A claim is something which someone says which they cannot prove and which may be false. He repeated his claim that the people of Trinidad and Tobago backed his action... He rejected claims that he had affairs with six women. N-COUNT: usu with supp, oft N that 3. If you say that someone claims responsibility or credit for something, you mean they say that they are responsible for it, but you are not sure whether or not they are telling the truth. An underground organisation has claimed responsibility for the bomb explosion... VERB: V n 4. If you claim something, you try to get it because you think you have a right to it. Now they are returning to claim what was theirs. VERB: V n 5. A claim is a demand for something that you think you have a right to. Rival claims to Macedonian territory caused conflict in the Balkans. N-COUNT: oft N to n 6. If someone claims a record, title, or prize, they gain or win it. (JOURNALISM) Zhuang claimed the record in 54.64 seconds... VERB: V n 7. If you have a claim on someone or their attention, you have the right to demand things from them or to demand their attention. She'd no claims on him now... He was surrounded by people, all with claims on his attention. N-COUNT: N on n 8. If something or someone claims your attention, they need you to spend your time and effort on them. There is already a long list of people claiming her attention. VERB: V n 9. If you claim money from the government, an insurance company, or another organization, you officially apply to them for it, because you think you are entitled to it according to their rules. Some 25 per cent of the people who are entitled to claim State benefits do not do so... John had taken out redundancy insurance but when he tried to claim, he was refused payment... They intend to claim for damages against the three doctors. VERB: V n, V, V for n • Claim is also a noun. ...the office which has been dealing with their claim for benefit... Last time we made a claim on our insurance they paid up really quickly. N-COUNT: oft N for n 10. If you claim money or other benefits from your employers, you demand them because you think you deserve or need them. The union claimed a pay rise worth four times the rate of inflation. VERB: V n • Claim is also a noun. They are making substantial claims for improved working conditions... Electricity workers have voted for industrial action in pursuit of a pay claim. N-COUNT: oft N for n 11. If you say that a war, disease, or accident claims someone's life, you mean that they are killed in it or by it. (FORMAL) Heart disease is the biggest killer, claiming 180,000 lives a year. VERB: V n 12. see also no claims 13. Someone's claim to fame is something quite important or interesting that they have done or that is connected with them. Barbara Follett's greatest claim to fame is that she taught Labour MPs how to look good on television. PHRASE: claim inflects, oft poss PHR 14. If you lay claim to something you do not have, you say that it belongs to you. (FORMAL) Five Asian countries lay claim to the islands. PHRASE: V inflects, PHR n 15. to stake a claim: see stake

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. a. Require, ask, demand, challenge, call for, lay claim to, assert as one's right. II. v. n. 1. Derive a right, obtain a title. 2. Assert a claim, put forward the claim. III. n. 1. Demand, call, requisition. 2. Right, pretension, title, privilege.

Moby Thesaurus

absolute interest, acquire, adduce, advance, adverse possession, affidavit, affirm, affirmation, allegation, allege, alodium, application, appurtenance, argue, ask, ask for, assert, assertion, authority, avow, be enfeoffed of, be entitled to, be hurting for, be indicated, be possessed of, be seized of, benefit, bill, bill of complaint, birthright, blackmail, boast, burgage, call, call for, catch up, challenge, claim, clamor for, clap hands on, clasp, claw, clench, clinch, clutch, colony, command, common, complaint, conjugal right, contend, contingent interest, contribution, cry for, cry out for, de facto, de jure, declaration, declare, defend, demand, demand for, dependency, deposition, derivative title, divine right, draft, drain, drain off, draw off, droit, due, duty, easement, embrace, enjoy, equitable interest, equity, estate, exact, exaction, extort, extortion, extortionate demand, faculty, fee fief, fee position, fee simple, fee simple absolute, fee simple conditional, fee simple defeasible, fee simple determinable, fee tail, feodum, feud, fiefdom, fill, frankalmoign, free socage, freehold, gavelkind, get, get hold of, glom on to, grab, grab hold of, grapple, grasp, grip, gripe, have, have and hold, have in hand, have occasion for, have tenure of, having title to, heavy demand, hold, holding, hug, impose, imposition, impost, inalienable right, indent, insist on, insist upon, insistent demand, interest, issue an ultimatum, justify, knight service, lay claim to, lay fee, lay hands on, lay hold of, lease, leasehold, legal claim, legal possession, levy, libel, limitation, loot, maintain, make a demand, mandate, nail, narratio, natural right, need, nip, nip up, nolle prosequi, nonnegotiable demand, nonsuit, notice, occupancy, occupation, occupy, order, order up, original title, owning, palm, part, partake, percentage, petition, pillage, place an order, pocket, possess, possessing, possession, postulate, power, preoccupancy, preoccupation, prepossession, prerequire, prerogative, prescription, presumptive right, pretend, pretend to, pretense, pretension, pretext, privilege, profess, profession, proper claim, property, property right, property rights, proprietary rights, protest too much, protestation, purport, put forth, put in requisition, receive, rend from, rending, request, require, requirement, requisition, right, right of entry, rights, ripping, rush, rush order, screw, seek, seisin, seize, set forth, settlement, share, snap up, snatch, socage, solicit, squat, squat on, squatting, stake, state, statement, statement of facts, steal, strict settlement, sublease, take, take by assault, take by storm, take doing, take hold of, take possession, tax, taxing, tear from, tearing, tenancy, tenantry, tenure, tenure in chivalry, title, tribute, trust, ultimatum, underlease, undertenancy, use, usucapion, usucapt, vested interest, vested right, villein socage, villeinhold, villenage, vindicate, want, want doing, warn, warning, warrant, whip up, wrench, wrench from, wrenching, wrest, wresting, wring, wring from, wringing