right

English Online Dictionary. What means right‎? What does right mean?

English

Alternative forms

• ryght (obsolete)
• reight (Yorkshire, eye dialect)
• rite (informal)

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, General American) enPR: rīt, IPA^(key): /ˈɹaɪt/, [ˈɹaɪt]
• Homophones: rite, wright, Wright, write, rate (dialectal; certain senses only)
• Rhymes: -aɪt

Other accents and pronunciations

• (Estuary English) IPA^(key): [ˈɹɒɪʔ]
• (Yorkshire, dialectal) IPA^(key): /ˈɹeɪt/, /ˈɹiːt/
• (Hiberno-English) IPA^(key): [ˈɹaɪθ̠], (Ulster) [ˈɻɐʏt], [-ʔ]
  • (Dublin) IPA^(key): /ˈɹo̞ɪ/, /ˈɹəɪ/, /ˈɹo̞ɪʔ/, /ˈɹəɪʔ/
• (Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈɹʌɪt/
  • (adverb: exactly, immediately) (especially Nova Scotia) IPA^(key): /ˈɹeɪt/
• (Ottawa Valley) IPA^(key): [ɹəi̯t], [ɹei̯t], [-ʔ], [-ɾ̥]
• (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /ˈɹaɪt/, [ˈɹɑe̯t]
• (General South African) IPA^(key): /ˈɹaɪt/, [ˈɹäːtʰ]

Etymology 1

From Middle English right, from Old English riht, reht (“right,” also the word for “straight” and “direct”), from Proto-West Germanic *reht, from Proto-Germanic *rehtaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵtós (“having moved in a straight line”), from *h₃reǵ- (“to straighten, direct”). The Germanic adjective which has been used also as a noun since the common Germanic period. Cognate with West Frisian rjocht, Dutch recht, German recht and Recht, Swedish rätt and rät, Danish ret, Norwegian Bokmål rett, Norwegian Nynorsk rett, Yiddish רעכט (rekht) and Icelandic rétt. The Indo-European root is also the source of Ancient Greek ὀρεκτός (orektós) and Latin rēctus; Albanian drejt was borrowed from Latin.

Adjective

right (comparative further right or more right or righter, superlative furthest right or most right or rightmost or rightest)

1. Designating the side of the body which is positioned to the east if one is facing north, the side on which the heart is not located in most humans. This arrow points to the reader's right: →

   Synonyms: right-hand, dexter, dextral

   Antonyms: left, left-hand, sinister, sinistral

2. Complying with justice, correctness, or reason; correct, just, true. See also the interjection senses below.

   Synonyms: correct, just

   Antonyms: wrong, incorrect, unjust
4. Appropriate, perfectly suitable; fit for purpose.

   Antonym: wrong

5. Healthy, sane, competent.

6. Real; veritable (used emphatically).
7. (geometry) Of an angle, having a size of 90 degrees, or one quarter of a complete rotation; the angle between two perpendicular lines.

8. (geometry) Of a geometric figure, incorporating a right angle between edges, faces, axes, etc.

9. (geography) Designating the bank of a river (etc.) on one's right when facing downstream (i.e. facing forward while floating with the current); that is, the south bank of a river that flows eastward. If this arrow: ⥴ shows the direction of the current, the tilde is on the right side of the river.

   Antonym: left

10. Designed to be placed or worn outward.

    the right side of a piece of cloth

11. (politics) Pertaining to the political right; conservative.

    Synonyms: right-wing, conservative

    Antonyms: left, left-wing, liberal

12. (Australia) All right; not requiring assistance.

    Synonyms: all right, OK
13. (dated) Most favourable or convenient; fortunate.
14. (archaic) Straight, not bent.

    Antonyms: bowed, crooked, curved

15. Of or relating to the right whale.

Derived terms

Descendants

• → Spanish: right
• → Welsh: reit

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English right, righte, from Old English rihte, rehte (“right; rightly; due; directly; straight”), from Proto-Germanic *rehta, from *rehtaz (“right; straight”).

Adverb

right (not comparable)

1. On the right side.
2. Towards the right side.
3. Exactly, precisely.
4. Immediately, directly.

5. (British, US, dialect) Very, extremely, quite.
6. According to fact or truth; actually; truly; really.
7. In a correct manner.

8. (dated, still used in some titles) To a great extent or degree.

Usage notes

• In the US, the word "right" is used as an adverb meaning "very, quite" in most of the major dialect areas, including the Southern US, Appalachia, New England, and the Midwest, though the usage is not part of standard US English. In the UK also it is not part of the standard language but is regarded as stereotypical of the dialects of northern England, though it occurs in other dialects also.

Quotations

• For quotations using this term, see Citations:right.

Synonyms

• (on the right side): rightward, rightwise
• (towards the right side): rightward, rightways
• (exactly, precisely): exactly, just, precisely, smack-dab; see also Thesaurus:exactly
• (immediately, directly): right smack, slap-bang
• (very, extremely): ever so; see also Thesaurus:very
• (according to fact or truth): in point of fact, in truth; see also Thesaurus:actually
• (correct manner): correctly, properly

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Interjection

right

2. Yes, that is correct; I agree.
   • 2016, VOA Learning English (public domain)

     Tell her you’re here.
     Right. Thanks, Pete.

4. I have listened to what you just said and I acknowledge your assertion or opinion, regardless of whether I agree with it (opinion) or can verify it (assertion).

6. Signpost word to change the subject in a discussion or discourse.

8. Used to check listener engagement and (especially) agreement at the end of an utterance or each segment thereof.

9. Used to add seriousness or decisiveness before a statement.

Usage notes

• The polysemic ambiguity, regarding the senses of (1) affirming agreement and (2) acknowledging an utterance independently of agreement, sometimes functions politely as a social lubricant, avoiding any sarcastic connotation that OK might easily imply; the degree of clarity is sufficient in contexts where getting to the bottom of who agrees or disagrees is superfluous to the purpose of the conversation.

Synonyms

• (I agree): all right, alright, right on, damn right, damn straight
• (I acknowledge, regardless of agreement): all right, alright, OK, okay, hmm, mmm
• (signpost marking change of subject): all right, alright, well
• (confirming attention, understanding, and/or agreement): all right, alright, y'know, do you know what I'm saying, you know what I'm saying, eh

Derived terms

• yeah right

Translations

Etymology 3

From Middle English right, righte, reght, reghte, riȝt, riȝte, from Old English riht, reht, ġeriht (“that which is right, just, or proper; a right; due; law; canon; rule; direction; justice; equity; standard”), from Proto-West Germanic *reht, from Proto-Germanic *rehtą (“a right”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵtom, from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵt- (“to straighten; direct”). Cognate with Dutch recht (“a right; privilege”), German Recht (“a right”), Danish ret (“a right”).

Noun

right (plural rights)

1. That which complies with justice, law or reason.
3. A legal, just or moral entitlement.
5. The right side or direction.

6. The right hand or fist.
8. The authority to perform, publish, film, or televise a particular work, event, etc.; a copyright.
9. (politics) The ensemble of right-wing political parties; political conservatives as a group.
10. The outward or most finished surface, as of a coin, piece of cloth, a carpet, etc.

    Synonym: (of fabric) right side
11. (surfing) A wave breaking from right to left (viewed from the shore).

    Antonym: left

Synonyms

• (right side): starboard, 3 o'clock

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “legal or moral entitlement”): duty, obligation

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 4

From Middle English righten, reghten, riȝten, from Old English rihtan, ġerihtan (“to straighten, judge, set upright, set right”), from Proto-West Germanic *rihtijan, from Proto-Germanic *rihtijaną (“to straighten; rectify; judge”).

Verb

right (third-person singular simple present rights, present participle righting, simple past and past participle righted)

1. (transitive) To correct.

2. (transitive) To set upright.

3. (intransitive) To return to normal upright position.

4. (transitive) To do justice to; to relieve from wrong; to restore rights to; to assert or regain the rights of.

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading

• “right”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• William Dwight Whitney, Benjamin E[li] Smith, editors (1911), “right”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., →OCLC.

Anagrams

• girth, grith

Middle English

Alternative forms

• reȝt, riȝte, riȝt, ryȝt, ryght, righte, riht

Etymology

From Old English riht.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /rixt/, /riːxt/, [ɹiːçt]
• Rhymes: -ixt

Noun

right (plural rightes)

1. A good deed; a right action.
2. A just or equitable action.
3. A law, ruling, judgement or rule.
4. A right, entitlement or privilege.
5. Truth, correctness.
6. right (direction; as opposed to the left)

Descendants

• English: right
  • → Spanish: right
  • → Welsh: reit
• Geordie English: reet
• Scots: richt
• Yola: reights (plural)

References

• “right, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-03-18.

Adjective

right (plural and weak singular righte, comparative rightre, superlative rightest)

1. Straight; not crooked or bent.
2. On the or at the right (as opposed to left)
3. Morally or legally correct or justified.
4. Real, genuine, authentic, true.
5. Natural, undisturbed.

Related terms

• rightful

Descendants

• English: right
  • → Spanish: right
  • → Welsh: reit
• Scots: richt
• Yola: reicht, riaught, ryaught

References

• “right, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-03-18.

Spanish

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English right fielder.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈrait/ [ˈrai̯t̪]
• Rhymes: -ait

Noun

right m (plural rights)

1. (baseball) right fielder

Usage notes

• According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.