Meaning & use
disenfranchised
Last updated
“disenfranchised” is a form of “disenfranchise”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
adjectivecomparable
Having lost, or never been given, the right to vote or to have a fair voice in decisions.
Grammar: Used before a noun (disenfranchised voters) or after be (they felt disenfranchised).
Patterns
- feel disenfranchised
- disenfranchised voters
Thousands of disenfranchised voters were unable to cast a ballot.
Many young people feel disenfranchised by a political system that ignores them.
The law left a whole community disenfranchised.
adjectivecomparablefigurative
Feeling cut off from power and unable to influence what happens in society or one's own community.
Grammar: Broader than the legal sense and often used with feel or become.
Patterns
- feel disenfranchised from something
- become disenfranchised
Workers who lost their jobs felt disenfranchised from the town's future.
Some fans feel disenfranchised by the sport's high ticket prices.
The new policy left rural residents disenfranchised.
verbtransitive
Past tense and past participle of disenfranchise, meaning to take away someone's right to vote or to be heard.
Grammar: Takes an object: the rule disenfranchised thousands of citizens.
Patterns
- disenfranchise someone
- be disenfranchised by something
The new law disenfranchised thousands of residents.
They were disenfranchised after moving without updating their registration.
Critics say the rules disenfranchised poorer voters.
Word forms
| comparative | more disenfranchised |
|---|---|
| superlative | most disenfranchised |
Common combinations
- feel disenfranchised
- Many citizens feel disenfranchised after the election.
- disenfranchised voters
- Disenfranchised voters filed a legal challenge.
- disenfranchised communities
- The program supports disenfranchised communities.
- politically disenfranchised
- Young renters are politically disenfranchised in many towns.
- leave someone disenfranchised
- The reform could leave millions disenfranchised.
Synonyms and how they differ
- marginalized
- Marginalized stresses being pushed to the edges of society, whereas disenfranchised stresses being denied power or the vote.
- powerless
- Powerless is a general feeling of having no control, but disenfranchised ties that lack of control to rights or representation.
- excluded
- Excluded just means left out, and it carries less of the political or legal flavor of disenfranchised.
- alienated
- Alienated describes emotional distance from a group, while disenfranchised is about lost rights or influence.
Opposites
Word family
- disenfranchise verb
- to take away someone's right to vote or be heard
- disenfranchisement noun
- the loss or denial of voting rights or influence
- enfranchise verb
- to give someone the right to vote
- franchise noun
- the right to vote, or a business license
Commonly confused: disenfranchised or disenchanted?
disenfranchised vs disenchanted
Disenchanted means disappointed and no longer enthusiastic, and it is not about rights or voting.
Practice
After the district lines were redrawn, many residents felt ___ because their votes no longer changed the result.
Choose one answer.
Disenfranchised fits because the residents lost real influence. Enfranchised and empowered mean the opposite, and disenchant is the wrong form.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “disenfranchised”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.