claim
1 of 2verb
ˈklām 
claimed; claiming; claims
transitive verb
1
a
: to ask for especially as a right
claimed the inheritance
The driver claimed the right to a hearing.
b
: to call for : require
this matter claims our attention
c
: take sense 16b
the accident claimed her life
2
: to take as the rightful owner
claimed her baggage and left the airport
3
a
: to assert in the face of possible contradiction : maintain
claimed that he'd been cheated
is claimed to cause weight loss
b
: to claim to have
organization … which claims 11,000 … members 
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone c
: to assert to be rightfully one's own
claimed responsibility for the attack
claimable
ˈklā-mə-bəl
adjective claim
2 of 2noun
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
The bank has a claim on their house.
b
: an assertion open to challenge
a claim of authenticity
advertisers' extravagant claims
3
: something that is claimed
especially : a tract of land staked out
The prospector's claim was set at 90 yards to reduce the potential for conflict.
Synonyms
Verb
- affirm
- allege
- assert
- aver
- avouch
- avow
- contend
- declare
- insist
- maintain
- profess
- protest
- purport
- warrant
Noun
- call
- dibs
- pretense
- pretence
- pretension
- right
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Verb He claims a connection to British royalty. The organization claims 10,000 members. The terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack. New Yorkers proudly claim the artist as one of their own. Both of them claimed credit for the idea. No one ever claimed authorship for the poem. You should claim compensation for the hours you worked. No heirs came forward to claim the inheritance. Noun She makes the claim that sea levels will actually go down. He made false claims about his past job experience. You'll need to file an insurance claim to pay for the damage. make a claim on your insurance policy All claims must be made in writing. See More
Recent Examples on the Web cleveland, 16 Sep. 2022 The annual event honors teens awarded on the local, state and regional levels, where one finalist will claim the national title. Michaela Zee, Variety, 16 Sep. 2022 That clampdown, together with coronavirus restrictions that critics claim are sometimes co-opted for political purposes have effectively silenced most overt forms of mass gathering or public dissent. Kathleen Magramo, CNN, 15 Sep. 2022 However, there are some conflicting reports that earlier more rudimentary games should claim the title. Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 15 Sep. 2022 The winning team will split $3 million, while the top individual will claim $4 million. John Keilman, Chicago Tribune, 15 Sep. 2022 But the venue’s site could provide Mobile a lift in offering an attractive multi-purpose sports venue, which Corte and others in the city claim the city lacks. al, 12 Sep. 2022 Contrary to what some of its critics claim, Amazon isn’t trying to pry into every nook and cranny of your home and health records. Allysia Finley, WSJ, 11 Sep. 2022 Hopes are rising that Xi will relent on the policy after next month’s 20th Communist Party Congress, at which he is widely expected to break with modern precedent in China’s leadership and claim a third term in power. Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 9 Sep. 2022 Ana Faguy, USA TODAY, 17 Sep. 2022 Critics of the Higg MSI claim it was created to greenwash fossil fuel manufacturing for the fashion industry, which depends on cheap synthetic fibers—allowing for massive profits, while masking the products’ true environmental costs. Rachel Donald, The New Republic, 17 Sep. 2022 The employee was also not properly vetted, the families — who are not identified in the lawsuit — claim. Lauren Lumpkin, Washington Post, 13 Sep. 2022 As Tiafoe apologized to the crowd Friday at the U.S. Open in New York City for letting them down — a claim to which spectators objected — those in College Park clapped for their hero and his historic run. Hayes Gardner, Baltimore Sun, 12 Sep. 2022 Despite the Supreme Court’s 2010 claim that humans and corporations deserve the same rights, the two self-evidently don’t have the same powers. Charlotte Kent, WIRED, 8 Sep. 2022 As for her girl-next-door, Y2K complexion, MUA Olivia Madorma lays claim to Charli's smoky eyes and mega-blush makeup. Seventeen, 6 Sep. 2022 Plaintiffs in the case claim the machines are unreliable and susceptible to hacking and tampering that can change election results. Mike Cason | Mcason@al.com, al, 30 Aug. 2022 That brings us to the other principal impact of the affidavit: on the obstruction of justice claim under 18 U.S.C. 1519. Norman Eisen And Shan Wu, CNN, 27 Aug. 2022 See More
Verb
Here’s a deep dive into the details behind this offer and the registration process to sign up and claim this bonus. cleveland, 16 Sep. 2022 The annual event honors teens awarded on the local, state and regional levels, where one finalist will claim the national title. Michaela Zee, Variety, 16 Sep. 2022 That clampdown, together with coronavirus restrictions that critics claim are sometimes co-opted for political purposes have effectively silenced most overt forms of mass gathering or public dissent. Kathleen Magramo, CNN, 15 Sep. 2022 However, there are some conflicting reports that earlier more rudimentary games should claim the title. Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 15 Sep. 2022 The winning team will split $3 million, while the top individual will claim $4 million. John Keilman, Chicago Tribune, 15 Sep. 2022 But the venue’s site could provide Mobile a lift in offering an attractive multi-purpose sports venue, which Corte and others in the city claim the city lacks. al, 12 Sep. 2022 Contrary to what some of its critics claim, Amazon isn’t trying to pry into every nook and cranny of your home and health records. Allysia Finley, WSJ, 11 Sep. 2022 Hopes are rising that Xi will relent on the policy after next month’s 20th Communist Party Congress, at which he is widely expected to break with modern precedent in China’s leadership and claim a third term in power. Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 9 Sep. 2022 Noun
The claim: Image shows CNN headline about a moth hurt in an ATF raid From fabricated screenshots of website articles to bogus photos of TV news segments, phony headlines are a common way misinformation is spread online. Ana Faguy, USA TODAY, 17 Sep. 2022 Critics of the Higg MSI claim it was created to greenwash fossil fuel manufacturing for the fashion industry, which depends on cheap synthetic fibers—allowing for massive profits, while masking the products’ true environmental costs. Rachel Donald, The New Republic, 17 Sep. 2022 The employee was also not properly vetted, the families — who are not identified in the lawsuit — claim. Lauren Lumpkin, Washington Post, 13 Sep. 2022 As Tiafoe apologized to the crowd Friday at the U.S. Open in New York City for letting them down — a claim to which spectators objected — those in College Park clapped for their hero and his historic run. Hayes Gardner, Baltimore Sun, 12 Sep. 2022 Despite the Supreme Court’s 2010 claim that humans and corporations deserve the same rights, the two self-evidently don’t have the same powers. Charlotte Kent, WIRED, 8 Sep. 2022 As for her girl-next-door, Y2K complexion, MUA Olivia Madorma lays claim to Charli's smoky eyes and mega-blush makeup. Seventeen, 6 Sep. 2022 Plaintiffs in the case claim the machines are unreliable and susceptible to hacking and tampering that can change election results. Mike Cason | Mcason@al.com, al, 30 Aug. 2022 That brings us to the other principal impact of the affidavit: on the obstruction of justice claim under 18 U.S.C. 1519. Norman Eisen And Shan Wu, CNN, 27 Aug. 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Verb and Noun
Middle English, from Anglo-French claimer, clamer, from Latin clamare to cry out, shout; akin to Latin calare to call — more at low entry 3
First Known Use
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Noun
14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Phrases Containing claim
Kids Definition
claim 1 of 2
verb
ˈklām
claimed; claiming
1
: to ask for as something that is a right or is deserved
claim an inheritance
Be sure to claim credit for your idea.
2
: to take as the rightful owner
I claimed my luggage at the airport.
3
: to state as a fact : insist to be true
"But our friend the Woggle-Bug claims to be highly educated …" L. Frank Baum, The Marvelous Land of Oz
L. Frank Baum, The Marvelous Land of Oz4
: to cause the end or death of
The disease claimed many lives.
claim
2 of 2noun
1
: a demand for something owed or believed to be owed
an insurance claim
2
: a right to something
He has a claim to the family fortune.
3
: something (as an area of land) claimed as someone's own
a prospector's claim
4
: a statement that others may dispute
Do you believe his outrageous claims?
Legal Definition
claim
noun
1
a
: a demand for something (as money) due or believed to be due
specifically : a demand for a benefit (as under the workers' compensation law) or contractual payment (as under an insurance policy)
b
: a paper embodying such a demand
filing a claim with the court
2
: a title to something (as a debt or privilege) in the possession of another
assigned her claim to the proceeds
3
a
: a right to seek a judicial remedy arising from a wrong or injury suffered
a plaintiff who has been injured in an accident has…one claim for a broken arm, another for a ruptured spleen, and so forth J. H. Friedenthal et al.
J. H. Friedenthal et al. also : the formal assertion of such a right
bringing a claim in the district court
b
: cause of action sense 1
a plaintiff stating a claim for negligence
see also res judicata Note: A cause of action may encompass more than one claim as the term is used in sense 3a. Claim is often used to mean cause of action, however, especially in modern federal practice.
c
: a right to payment or to an equitable remedy as set forth in the Bankruptcy Code see also proof of claim
4
: a formal assertion made by an applicant for a patent of the novelty and patentability of an invention with a description of the invention and its purpose
claim 1 of 2
verb
1
as in to insist
to state as a fact usually forcefully people who claim that they have been kidnapped by aliens from other worlds Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- insist
- allege
- assert
- contend
- declare
- affirm
- argue
- maintain
- proclaim
- protest
- announce
- purport
- profess
- reason
- aver
- confirm
- defend
- warrant
- avow
- put forth
- justify
- avouch
- rationalize
- vindicate
- broadcast
- reaffirm
- uphold
- reassert
- support
- persevere
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- deny
- reject
- disclaim
- abandon
- dispute
- gainsay
- disavow
- repudiate
- refute
- negate
- challenge
- question
- disprove
- negative
- rebut
- contradict
- counter
- disown
- confute
2
as in to demand
to ask for (something) earnestly or with authority after many years had passed, he suddenly appeared to claim his inheritance Synonyms & Similar Words
- demand
- request
- ask
- require
- want
- quest
- exact
- command
- need
- enjoin
- call (for)
- take
- stipulate (for)
- clamor (for)
- necessitate
- warrant
- press (for)
- insist (on)
- impose
- requisition
- harass
- hound
- cry (for)
- badger
- plead (for)
- dun
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- yield
- surrender
- relinquish
- give up
3
as in to destroy
to deprive of life cancer claims hundreds of thousands of Americans each year Synonyms & Similar Words
- destroy
- kill
- slay
- dispatch
- take
- fell
- carry off
- murder
- do for
- do in
- waste
- croak
- cut down
- neutralize
- slaughter
- rub out
- assassinate
- finish
- get
- take out
- execute
- blot out
- annihilate
- whack
- decimate
- off
- bump off
- smite
- massacre
- terminate
- kill off
- put away
- snuff
- butcher
- make away with
- martyr
- scrag
- mow
- put down
- do away with
- ice
- knock off
- euthanize
- suicide
- euthanatize
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- raise
- revive
- restore
- resurrect
- animate
- nurture
- resuscitate
4
as in to need
to have as a requirement caring for her three small children claims virtually all of her time Synonyms & Similar Words
- need
- require
- want
- take
- demand
- challenge
- call for
- warrant
- involve
- necessitate
- ask
- insist
- entail
- stipulate
- beg
- bear
- quest
- lack
- exact
- enjoin
- press
- clamor (for)
- cry (for)
- command
- hurt (for)
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- have
- hold
- possess
- own
claim
2 of 2noun
1
as in right
an entitlement to something I'm announcing my claim to that last slice of pizza Synonyms & Similar Words
- right
- call
- dibs
- title
- pretense
- refusal
- prerogative
- pretence
- pretension
- privilege
- birthright
- favor
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- waiver
- disclaimer
- release
- quitclaim
2
as in stake
a legal right to participation in the advantages, profits, and responsibility of something a shareholder has a claim in the business Synonyms & Similar Words
- stake
- interest
- share
- ownership
- title
- possession
- partnership
- part
- co-ownership
3
as in assertion
a solemn and often public declaration of the truth or existence of something Galileo's claim that the moon has a very irregular surface and thus is not the perfect sphere that the ancients had imagined Synonyms & Similar Words
- assertion
- declaration
- allegation
- insistence
- announcement
- argument
- affirmation
- proclamation
- protestation
- profession
- asseveration
- avowal
- justification
- avouchment
- pronouncement
- confirmation
- vindication
- reason
- rationalization
- reaffirmation
- reconfirmation
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- dispute
- question
- challenge
- disavowal
- disclaimer
- refutation
- rebuttal
- denial
- contradiction
- disproof
- negation
- confutation
4
as in request
something that someone insists upon having young children make great claims on their parents' time Synonyms & Similar Words
- request
- demand
- requirement
- wish
- must
- desire
- requisition
- stipulation
- need
- dun
- ultimatum
- provision
- basic
- want
- importunity
- essential
- imposition
- drive
- condition
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of claim are demand, exact, and require. While all these words mean "to ask or call for something as due or as necessary," claim implies a demand for the delivery or concession of something due as one's own or one's right.
claimed the right to manage his own affairs
The synonyms demand and claim are sometimes interchangeable, but demand implies peremptoriness and insistence and often the right to make requests that are to be regarded as commands.
demanded payment of the debt
The words exact and claim are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, exact implies not only demanding but getting what one demands.
exacts absolute loyalty
In some situations, the words require and claim are roughly equivalent. However, require suggests the imperativeness that arises from inner necessity, compulsion of law or regulation, or the exigencies of the situation.
the patient requires constant attention
- money riding
- money scrivener
- money shot
- money spider
- money supply
- money talks
- money to burn
- money weight
- money-back
- money-back guarantee
- book token
- book tripe
- book truck
- book value
- book van
- book wagon
- book word
- book wrapper
- book-fold
- book-learned
- book-match
- book-matched
- book-matches
- book-matching
- book-sewing