claim
Americanverb (used with object)
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to demand by or as by virtue of a right; demand as a right or as due.
to claim an estate by inheritance.
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to assert and demand the recognition of (a right, title, possession, etc.); assert one's right to.
to claim payment for services.
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to assert or maintain as a fact.
She claimed that he was telling the truth.
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to require as due or fitting.
to claim respect.
verb (used without object)
noun
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a demand for something as due; an assertion of a right or an alleged right.
He made unreasonable claims on the doctor's time.
- Synonyms:
- call, requisition, request
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an assertion of something as a fact.
He made no claims to originality.
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a right to claim or demand; a just title to something.
His claim to the heavyweight title is disputed.
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something that is claimed, especially a piece of public land for which formal request is made for mining or other purposes.
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a request or demand for payment in accordance with an insurance policy, a workers' compensation law, etc..
We filed a claim for compensation from the company.
idioms
verb
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to demand as being due or as one's property; assert one's title or right to
he claimed the record
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(takes a clause as object or an infinitive) to assert as a fact; maintain against denial
he claimed to be telling the truth
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to call for or need; deserve
this problem claims our attention
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to take
the accident claimed four lives
noun
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an assertion of a right; a demand for something as due
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an assertion of something as true, real, or factual
he made claims for his innocence
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a right or just title to something; basis for demand
a claim to fame
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to assert one's possession of or right to
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anything that is claimed, esp in a formal or legal manner, such as a piece of land staked out by a miner
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law a document under seal, issued in the name of the Crown or a court, commanding the person to whom it is addressed to do or refrain from doing some specified act former name writ 1
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a demand for payment in connection with an insurance policy, etc
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the sum of money demanded
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Usage
What does claim mean? To claim something is to maintain that the something is a fact, as in The company claims its product cures hiccups. A claim is the assertion of a fact, as in The claim that Shayna has a beautiful voice was proved when she began to sing. To claim is also to demand one’s right to something, such as to claim payment for a service given. As a noun, this claim can be the demand for that something, such as a claim on your time. Example: My ancestors laid claim to this land decades ago and I don't plan on letting it go any time soon.
Synonym Usage
See demand.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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claimernoun
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superclaimnoun
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misclaimverb (used with object)
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overclaimverb (used with object)
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preclaimverb (used with object)
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claimableadjective
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claimlessadjective
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nonclaimableadjective
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unclaimedadjective
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unclaimingadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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claimsimple
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claimssimple
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have claimedperfect
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has claimedperfect
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am claimingprogressive
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are claimingprogressive
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is claimingprogressive
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have been claimingperfect progressive
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has been claimingperfect progressive
Past
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claimedsimple
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had claimedperfect
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was claimingprogressive
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were claimingprogressive
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had been claimingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of claim
First recorded in 1250–1300; (verb) Middle English claimen, from Anglo-French, Old French claimer, from Latin clāmāre “to cry out”; (noun) Middle English, from Anglo-French, Old French cla(i)me; the noun is derivative of the verb
Explanation
When you express your right to something, you're making a claim to it, like telling your sister, "This bowl of cereal is mine." A claim is when you express your right to something that belongs to you, like your medical records or the deed to your home. When you make a claim or claim something, you're demanding it or saying it’s true. People claim dependents and deductions on their taxes. In court, you could claim you deserve money from an employer who cheated you. You could claim you can juggle chainsaws. With any kind of claim, you're going to have to prove it.
Vocabulary lists containing claim
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 1
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Argumentative Writing
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
And finally, they react to the Japanese prime minister’s recent claim of sleeping zero to three hours a night.
From Slate ● Jul. 25, 2026
Iran's Revolutionary Guards, meanwhile, said they had targeted an Amazon data center in Bahrain, according to state media, though neither the US tech giant nor Bahrain has commented on the claim.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
A Home Office spokesperson said the crossing served as a "stark reminder that criminal gangs have no regard for the safety of those they claim to help".
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
They also form a partnership and set out to make their fortune and save the planet with a tidal-energy company that they claim will “power our civilization by slinging a yoke around the moon.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Sambo was a skilled carpenter and would always claim that he was the son of an African king.
From "In the Shadow of Liberty" by Kenneth C. Davis
And it seems Real Madrid are willing to discuss Aurelien Tchouameni's situation amid claims they want to sign World Cup winner Rodri from Manchester City.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
She claims that Levon Helm Studios has been the victim of an “aggressive takeover” by the new president, a longtime shareholder named Brian Parillo, and that she has washed her hands of the company.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
All eyes are on Taylor Farms and their contaminated lettuce, Trump tries a new tariff tactic, and Japan’s prime minister claims to barely sleep.
From Slate ● Jul. 25, 2026
They narrowly voted to exclude emideltide, which has been considered for insomnia, narcolepsy and opioid withdrawal, with numerous other marketing claims including stress, pain and cancer.
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
Now this character turns up out of nowhere to sell Steve Eisman on what he claims is his own original brilliant idea for betting against the subprime mortgage bond market.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
To justify the $11.1 billion included for new emergency farm aid, the request claimed that farmers are in urgent need of additional financial help.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
He claimed the department sought to make an example of him because he refused to implicate his superiors in wrongdoing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
One reporter even claimed Fury paused to kiss Wach midway through the sixth round.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
A lawsuit filed by Scott Winters, a 55-year-old pastor from Florida, claimed ChatGPT told him not to seek medical help after repeatedly asking about symptoms in the build-up to a near-fatal pulmonary embolism.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
Thomas had claimed that I’d already won, because in spite of my second-place reign, I kept showing up and doing what I loved.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Sandy confirms making that call, claiming her email was dictated by her stepdaughter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
Online influencers have been marketing peptides in "stacks" for unproven uses, claiming they can be used as a quick way to look younger, help you heal and improve your skin.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
For instance two researchers at Hong Kong University recently published a research paper claiming — in theory, anyway — they may have found one.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
Another case against American Airlines, for a client claiming ownership of Havana’s international airport, settled out of court.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
An honest man except when it comes to food, our father would lie, claiming to have just returned from the pricey new Fresh Market.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
