call one's own

Idioms and Phrases

Claim or regard something as one's possession or under one's control, as in Victorian wives had almost nothing to call their own . This expression, dating from about 1600, today is often used in a negative context, as in the example. It also appears in can't call one's time one's own , which dates from the 18th century and means one spends much of one's time in someone else's service, as in The hours in this job are terrible; I can't call my time my own .