ownership

ownership — noun

1. the legal condition of having something as your own, such as land, a home, or a

1.nounC1
Definition

the legal condition of having something as your own, such as land, a home, or a business.

Example

The papers show clear ownership of the small farm outside Tainan.

pattern: ownership of + thing

After the sale, ownership of the cafe passed to Lina's family.

pattern: ownership passed to + new owner

Common collocations
  • joint ownership
  • full ownership
  • shared ownership
  • proof of ownership
  • transfer ownership
Synonyms
  • possession

    can mean simply having something with you, without focusing on legal rights

  • title

    more formal and often used for the legal right or document for property

  • control

    focuses on decision-making power, even when the thing is not legally yours

  • proprietorship

    formal term, often used in business or legal writing

Antonyms
  • renting

    means paying to use something that belongs to someone else

  • borrowing

    means having something temporarily with permission, not owning it

Grammar Patterns

ownership of something

transfer ownership of something

joint ownership of something

Usage Note

Usually uncountable and often followed by 'of'. Common in legal and business contexts after verbs such as 'prove', 'transfer', 'share', and 'retain'. Distinguish from 'possession', which can mean simply having something with you, even without the legal right to it.

Common Mistakes

The papers prove my ownership for the bike.
The papers prove my ownership of the bike.
Use 'of', not 'for', after 'ownership'.
Nina has ownership of the office keys today.
Nina has the office keys today.' / 'Nina has possession of the office keys today.
'ownership' means legal right, not temporary control.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Ownership' is the broad word for the legal state of having something as yours. 'Possession' often means simply having something in your hand, bag, or house, so a person may have possession without ownership. 'Title' is narrower and more formal: it refers to the legal right, or sometimes the document, that shows who owns land, a car, or another valuable thing. 'Control' is different again, because it focuses on the power to decide how something is used, even if it belongs to someone else. You can prove ownership with records, lose possession when a thief takes your bag, and transfer title when a sale is completed.

ownership ↗possession ↗title ↗control ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • proof of ownership
  • transfer of ownership
  • joint ownership
  • private ownership

Phrases

  • prove ownership of
  • transfer ownership of
  • retain ownership of
  • dispute ownership of

Prepositions

  • ownership of
  • ownership by

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

The word was formed in English from 'owner' and the ending '-ship'. 'Owner' comes from 'own', an Old English word about something belonging to a person. The ending '-ship' makes an abstract noun, so 'ownership' developed to mean the state or legal relation of being an owner.