Definitions for ownoʊn

This page provides all possible meanings and translations of the word own

Random House Webster's College Dictionary


  1. of, pertaining to, or belonging to oneself or itself (usu. used after a possessive to emphasize the idea of ownership, interest, or relation conveyed by the possessive):

    He spent only his own money.


    She insists on being her own doctor.

  3. (pron.)something that belongs to oneself.

    Category: Common Vocabulary

  4. (v.t.)to have or hold as one's own; possess.

  5. to acknowledge or admit:

    to own a fault.

  6. to acknowledge as one's own.

  7. (v.i.)to confess (often fol. by to, up, or up to).

Idioms for own:

  1. come into one's own, to achieve the recognition, professional stature, or self-respect that one deserves.

    Category: Idiom

  2. hold one's own, to maintain one's position or condition. to be equal to the opposition.

    Category: Idiom

  3. on one's own, through one's own efforts or resources. living or functioning independently: Chiefly oneself; without company:

    She was on her own at 17.

    I'll walk home on my own, thank you.

    Category: Idiom

Origin of own:

bef. 900; ME owen, OE āgen, c. OHG eigan (G eigen), ON eiginn, OE āgan, āgnian


Princeton's WordNet

  1. own(a), ain(verb)


    "for your own use"; "do your own thing"; "she makes her own clothes"; "`ain' is Scottish"

  2. own, have, possess(verb)

    have ownership or possession of


Kernerman English Learner's Dictionary

  1. own(verb)ˈoʊn

    to have the legal right to possess

    He owns three other cars.

  2. own(adjective)ˈoʊn

    emphasizes that sth belongs to you or is done by you

    I'd like to have my own room.; He owns his own business.; One day you'll have children of your own.; I made my own dress.

  3. ownˈoʊn

    alone or without help

    He made the song up on his own.; She's all on her own at home today.

  4. ownˈoʊn

    to do sth bad to sb because they have done sth bad to you

    Don't worry, I'll get my own back.

  5. ownˈoʊn

    to be good or strong enough to compete

    He can hold his own against the senior players.


  1. own(Verb)


    I own this car.

  2. own(Verb)

    To claim as one's own; to answer to.

  3. own

    To defeat or embarrass; to overwhelm.

  4. own

    To virtually or figuratively enslave.

  5. own


  6. own


  7. own


  8. own(Verb)


  9. own(Verb)

    To confess.

  10. own(Adjective)

    Belonging to; possessed; proper to;

  11. own(Adjective)

    peculiar, domestic;

  12. own

    not foreign;

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'own' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #115

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'own' in Written Corpus Frequency: #250

  3. Verbs Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'own' in Verbs Frequency: #318

Translations for own

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary


to have as a possession

I own a car.

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