franchise

Everyday

1. (business) Permission from a company to sell its products or run a shop using its name, as in «a burger franchise». tree →
2. A shop or business run in this way. tree →
3. A series of films, games, books and toys based on the same characters, as in «the Star Wars franchise». tree →
4. (formal) The right to vote in elections, as in «women won the franchise». tree →
5. (US, sport) A professional sports team. tree →

In the lessons

In history lessons, «the franchise» was extended so more people could vote; the Suffragettes fought for women's franchise. In business and everyday life, many fast-food shops are franchises. In films and games, a big «franchise» has many sequels and toys. In US sport, team owners own the franchise.

Examples

• That pizza shop is a franchise of a big chain. tree →
• The Marvel franchise has dozens of films. tree →
• Women gained the franchise in the UK in 1918 and 1928. tree →
• Uncle Tom bought a coffee franchise. tree →
• The company franchises its name to shops around the world. tree →
• The football franchise moved to a new city. tree →

Note

Said «FRAN-chyze». The voting sense is formal; «suffrage» is a close word. «Disenfranchise» means to take away someone's right to vote.