Definition of "franchise"

franchise¹

/ˈfɹænt͡ʃaɪ̯z/

noun
countable and uncountable, plural franchises
1. The right to vote at a public election or referendum; see: suffrage, suffragette.
2. A right or privilege officially granted to a person, a group of people, or a company by a government.
  Quotations
  Election by universal suffrage, as modified by the Constitution, is the one crowning franchise of the American people.
  a. 1872, William H. Seward, debate
3. An acknowledgment of a corporation's existence and ownership.
4. The authorization granted by a company to sell or distribute its goods or services in a certain area.
5. A business operating under such authorization, a franchisee.
6. A legal exemption from jurisdiction.
7. The membership of a corporation or state; citizenship.
8. The district or jurisdiction to which a particular privilege extends; the limits of an immunity; hence, an asylum or sanctuary.
  Quotations
  Churches and monasteries in Spain are franchises for criminals.
  1810, “Franchise”, in James Millar, editor, Encyclopaedia Britannica
9. (sports) The collection of organizations in the history of a sports team; the tradition of a sports team as an entity, extending beyond the contemporary organization.
10. (business, marketing) The positive influence on the buying behavior of customers exerted by the reputation of a company or a brand.
  Quotations
  Once a brand has established a consumer franchise and a brand image, it takes a long time for these to decay, as the image is maintained more by people's personal familiarity with and usage of the brand than by external marketing stimuli.
  2000, John Philip Jones, Behind powerful brands: from strategy to campaign, page 80
  Warren Buffett teaches us that the best business to own, the one with the best long-term prospects is a franchise - one that sells a product or service that is needed or desired, has no close substitute, and yields profits that are unregulated.
  2002, Robert G. Hagstrom, The Essential Buffett: Timeless Principles for the New Economy, page 26
  Certain other industries have no plant. Value derives entirely from brand franchise. (Consulting firms, engineering firms, and advertising agencies do not talk about the value of their franchise. Instead, they talk about "reputation".)
  2007, Jack L. Treynor, Treynor on institutional investing, page 354
11. The loose collection of fictional works pertaining to a particular fictional universe, including literary, film, or television series from various sources, generally when all authorized by a copyright holder or similar authority.
12. Exemption from constraint or oppression; freedom; liberty.
  Quotations
  Ye […] the love of ladies foule defame; To whom the world this franchise ever yeelded, That of their loves choise they might freedom clame.
  1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book IV, Canto IX”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie
13. (obsolete) Magnanimity; generosity; liberality; frankness; nobility.

franchise²

/ˈfɹænt͡ʃaɪ̯z/

verb
third-person singular simple present franchises, present participle franchising, simple past and past participle franchised
1. (transitive) To confer certain powers on; grant a franchise to; authorize.
2. (transitive, rare) To set free; invest with a franchise or privilege; enfranchise.
3. (transitive) To give to others the rights to sell or distribute (goods or services).
  Quotations
  The ad originators are planning to franchise the campaign to gay groups all across the country.
  1974 April 13, “Lavender Line: Near Complete”, in Gay Community News, page 3

Definition of "franchise"

franchise1

noun

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franchise2

verb

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franchise¹

franchise²