enfranchisement

noun

1
as in emancipation
the act of setting free from slavery the Emancipation Proclamation was merely the first step in the full enfranchisement of African-Americans

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2
as in suffrage
the right to formally express one's position or will in an election a time when enfranchisement was limited to white males who owned property

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of enfranchisement And in the young republic, enfranchisement quickly expanded further, with perhaps 80 percent of adult white men—90 percent in some states—coming to hold the right to vote. — Yoni Appelbaum, The Atlantic, 8 June 2026 Many claim that with the abolition of slavery and the enfranchisement of women, and many other new laws like civil rights legislation and changing gender norms, there has been great progress. — Literary Hub, 12 Dec. 2025 In theory, this transition inaugurates a chapter of enfranchisement, but in the next scene the Senegalese businessmen are in suits, and the white men return with briefcases full of money as bribes. — Lovia Gyarkye, IndieWire, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enfranchisement
  1. emancipation
  2. suffrage
  3. liberation
Noun
  • The year 1933, Arendt contended, marked the close of the age of bourgeois emancipation and Jewish liberation, which brought an end to a feeling of security in the West and signaled that the new sense of security in the East was a pipe dream.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026
  • The draft class imports and the emancipation of legends are a battle for another year.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of emancipation
Noun
  • Or that women’s suffrage in America was first secured here thanks to a bill introduced in 1869, back when it was called Wyoming Territory.
    — Téa Obreht, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The Seneca Falls Convention began on July 19, 1848, a seminal moment for the women's suffrage movement.
    — Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 17 July 2026
Definition of suffrage
Noun
  • There is something deeply hypocritical about discovering and using the language of women’s liberation only when your own status, reputation, or income is at stake.
    — Laura Jung, Vogue, 25 Aug. 2026
  • That progressive sociopolitical stance is evident from the beginning of her career, which overlapped with the emergence of the women’s liberation movement.
    — Maria Sherman, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of liberation

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Cite this Entry

“Enfranchisement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enfranchisement. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

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