Franchise

How to spell franchise

9 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce franchise

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does franchise mean?

1. nounA licence granting the right to run a business using an established company's brand and methods.
2. nounThe legal right to vote in public elections.
3. nounA series of related films, games, or other media built around a single brand or set of characters.

Franchise in a sentence

• The couple bought a coffee franchise in the new shopping centre.

• The reform extended the franchise to working women for the first time.

• The studio announced three more films in the popular franchise.

• The company sold a franchise to operators in twelve different cities.

• Campaigners argued that prisoners should retain the franchise during their sentences.

• The spy franchise has earned billions across its many sequels.

Where does franchise come from?

Language of origin: French

This word comes from Old French, where the noun franchise meant 'freedom' or 'exemption', built on the adjective franc, meaning 'free'. That franc also gave its name to the Franks, the Germanic people who ruled much of medieval France and who were considered the free men of the realm; the same root sits behind the words 'frank' (open, candid) and the old French currency, the franc. English took the word in during the 1300s, originally to describe a liberty or privilege granted by a ruler, such as the freedom of a town or an exemption from a duty. From the idea of a granted right it later branched into two familiar modern meanings: the legal right to vote, and a commercial licence allowing someone to trade under an established brand. The spelling keeps the French shape, with the silent flavour of franc preserved and the -chise ending that trips up writers expecting a simpler -ize or -ise.

How the word is built

• franch- (from Old French franc: free)
• -ise (noun-forming suffix)