ownership

/ˈoʊnərʃɪp/

/ˈʌʊnəʃɪp/

Other forms: ownerships

Ownership is the state of owning something. Anything that people own or possess gives them the quality of ownership. Wars are often fought over the ownership of land.

When you buy a book, you own it. Add the suffix ship to owner, and now you have ownership of that lovely book. If you buy a house, you have ownership of it. Politicians like to talk about the “American dream of home ownership.” If you buy a lottery ticket, you have ownership of that, too. If you win big, you’ll have ownership of lots of cash and then you, too can realize that American dream.

Definitions of ownership

1. noun

   the state or fact of being an owner
   type of:

   state

   the way something is with respect to its main attributes
2. noun

   the act of having and controlling property
   synonyms: possession

   types:

   actual possession

   (law) immediate and direct physical control over property

   constructive possession

   (law) having the power and intention to have and control property but without direct control or actual presence upon it

   criminal possession

   (law) possession for which criminal sanctions are provided because the property may not lawfully be possessed or may not be possessed under certain circumstances

   holding, keeping, retention

   the act of retaining something

   illegal possession

   possession of controlled substances

   withholding

   the act of holding back or keeping within your possession or control

   storage

   the act of storing something

   type of:

   control

   the activity of managing or exerting control over something
3. noun

   the relation of an owner to the thing possessed; possession with the right to transfer possession to others
   types:

   community

   common ownership

   severalty

   exclusive individual ownership

   property right

   the legal right of ownership

   proprietary, proprietorship

   an unincorporated business owned by a single person who is responsible for its liabilities and entitled to its profits

   employee ownership

   ownership of a business by the people who work for it

   landholding

   ownership of land; the state or fact of owning land

   stockholding

   ownership of stocks; the state or fact of holding stock

   public domain

   property rights that are held by the public at large

   accession

   (civil law) the right to all of that which your property produces whether by growth or improvement

   type of:

   relation

   an abstraction belonging to or characteristic of two entities or parts together