Definition of franchise

• a. - Exemption from constraint or oppression; freedom; liberty.
• a. - A particular privilege conferred by grant from a sovereign or a government, and vested in individuals; an imunity or exemption from ordinary jurisdiction; a constitutional or statutory right or privilege, esp. the right to vote.
• a. - The district or jurisdiction to which a particular privilege extends; the limits of an immunity; hence, an asylum or sanctuary.
• a. - Magnanimity; generosity; liberality; frankness; nobility.
• v. t. - To make free; to enfranchise; to give liberty to.