dual citizenship

Meaning

1. 1noununcountablelegal

   The legal status of being a citizen of two countries at the same time, with the rights and duties of each.

   Grammar: Usually uncountable: she has dual citizenship; you do not usually say a dual citizenship.

   Patterns

   • hold dual citizenship
   • dual citizenship with somewhere
   • apply for dual citizenship

   Their daughter holds dual citizenship because her mother is Canadian and her father is Irish.

   Some countries do not allow dual citizenship and ask you to give up your old passport.

   He applied for dual citizenship so he could work in both places.

Common combinations

hold dual citizenship

Many athletes hold dual citizenship and can choose which team to play for.

apply for dual citizenship

You can apply for dual citizenship after living there for five years.

grant dual citizenship

The government agreed to grant dual citizenship to descendants of emigrants.

allow dual citizenship

Not every nation allows dual citizenship.

dual citizenship rules

Dual citizenship rules changed last year.

Synonyms and how they differ

dual nationality

Dual nationality is nearly identical in everyday use, but nationality can stress legal membership of a state while citizenship stresses rights such as voting.

double citizenship

Double citizenship is a less formal, less common wording of the same idea.

multiple citizenship

Multiple citizenship covers any number above one, while dual means exactly two.

Opposites

Word family

citizen noun

a legal member of a country

citizenship noun

the status of being a citizen

dual adjective

made of two parts or having two roles

naturalize verb

to give citizenship to someone born elsewhere

Commonly confused: dual citizenship or residency?

Practice

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