own
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- personal, individual, particular, private
[pronoun]
Synonyms:
- hold one's own: compete, keep going, keep one's end up, keep one's head above water
- on one's own: alone, by oneself, independently, singly, unaided, unassisted, under one's own steam
[verb]
Synonyms:
- possess, be in possession of, enjoy, have, hold, keep, retain
- acknowledge, admit, allow, concede, confess, grant, recognize
- own up: confess, admit, come clean, make a clean breast, tell the truth

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Antonyms: disown, repudiate
Contrasted words: deny, disclaim

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English Thesaurus: own, have, possess, belong to somebody/something, hold, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. own¹ S1 W1 /əʊn $ oʊn/ adjective, pronoun [always after a possessive]

1. used to emphasize that something belongs to or is connected with a particular person or thing and not any other:
Bring your own equipment.
Every dance has its own rhythm.
The yacht was intended for the King’s own personal use.
His face was only a few inches from her own.
of your own
We have problems of our own.
I’d like to have a place of my own (=my own home).
your very own (=used to add more emphasis)
One day I want to have a horse of my very own.
something to call your own/which you can call your own (=something that belongs to you)
She just wanted a place to call her own.

2. used to emphasize that someone did or made something without the help or involvement of anyone else:
She makes a lot of her own clothes.
We encourage students to develop their own ideas.
It’s your own fault for leaving the window open.

3. (all) on your own
a) alone:
I’ve been living on my own for four years now.
He didn’t want to be left on his own.
b) without anyone’s help:
You can’t expect him to do it all on his own.
I can manage on my own, thanks.

4. for your own good/safety/benefit etc if you do something for someone’s own good etc, you do it to help them even though they might not like it or want it:
I’m only telling you this for your own good.
He was kept away from the other prisoners for his own safety.

5. too nice/clever etc for your own good used to say that someone has too much of a good quality so that it may be a disadvantage:
Stephen can be too generous for his own good.

6. get your own back (on somebody) informal to do something bad to someone who has harmed you, as a way of punishing them ⇒ revenge:
She wanted to get her own back on Liz for ruining her party.

7. be your own man/woman to have strong opinions and intentions that are not influenced by other people:
Hilary’s very much her own woman.

8. make something your own to change or deal with something in a way that makes it seem to belong to you:
Great singers can take an old song and make it their own.
⇒ come into your own at come¹(6), ⇒ hold your own at hold¹(24)


GRAMMAR
Use own only after possessive words such as 'my', 'John’s', 'the company’s' etc:
Few of them got back to their own country (NOT the own country).
Do not say 'an own car/room/computer etc'. Say a car/room/computer etc of your own:
He soon had enough money to buy a truck of his own.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. own² S2 W2 verb [transitive not in progressive]
[Word Family: verb: own, disown; noun: owner, ownership]
[Language: Old English; Origin: agnian, from agen 'own']

1. to have something which belongs to you, especially because you have bought it, been given it etc and it is legally yours ⇒ possess:
The building is owned by the local council.
You need to get permission from the farmer who owns the land.
Many more people now own their own homes.
the cost of owning a car
publicly/privately owned British English (=belonging to the government or a private organization)
a privately owned company

2. as if/as though/like you own the place informal to behave in a way that is too confident and upsets other people:
She acts like she owns the place!
They walked in as if they owned the place.

3. old-fashioned to admit that something is true
own (that)
I own that I judged her harshly at first.
own to
I must own to a feeling of anxiety.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

own
verb
ADV. communally, jointly Only when the means of production were communally owned would classes disappear. She owns the house jointly with her husband.
legally He committed the crime with a gun that he legally owned.
PHRASES directly/indirectly owned by sb, own your own boat, home, etc. They dreamed of owning their own home.
partly/wholly owned by sb The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of SNL Research.
privately/publicly owned The museum is privately owned.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

own
pronoun
1.
BAD: I had the whole beach for my own.
GOOD: I had the whole beach to myself.

Usage Note:
Own (= belonging to you, or only to be used by you) is used either in front of a noun, or in the phrase of your own: 'I wish I had my own car.' 'I wish I had a car of my own.'
have sb/sth (all) to yourself = be the only person or people in a place, using something, talking to someone, etc: 'After the children had gone, we had the house all to ourselves.'

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2.
BAD: He's decided to resign and work for his own.
GOOD: He's decided to resign and work for himself.
BAD: They want everything for their own.
GOOD: They want everything for themselves.

Usage Note:
do/want sth for yourself (NOT for your own ): 'He's kept all the money for himself.'

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3.
BAD: I didn't have a room for my own but had to share one.
GOOD: I didn't have a room of my own but had to share one.

Usage Note:
of your own (NOT for ): 'Timothy has now decided that he wants a bicycle of his own.'

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4.
BAD: I now have enough money to buy an own car.
GOOD: I now have enough money to buy my own car.

Usage Note:
Own always follows my/her/their/Jill's etc (NOT an ) 'their own children', 'her own flat', 'Tina's own radio'.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

own if you own something, it legally belongs to you:
They live in a flat but they don’t own it.
The land is owned by farmers.
a privately owned plane
have [not in passive] to own something – used when focussing on the fact that someone has the use of something, rather than the fact that they legally own it:
How many students have a cell phone?
I wish I had a sports car.
possess [not in passive] formal to own something:
It is illegal to possess a firearm in Britain.
I don’t even possess a smart suit!
belong to somebody/something [not in passive] if something belongs to you, you own it:
The ring belonged to my grandmother.
hold to own shares in a company:
One man holds a third of the company’s shares.
be the property of somebody/something formal to be owned by someone – written on signs, labels etc:
This camera is the property of the BBC.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

own
əun
See: come into one's own , dose of one's own medicine , hold one's own , in a world of one's own , keep one's own counsel , of one's own accord or of one's own free will , on one's own account or on one's own hook , on one's own time , sign one's own death warrant , take the law into one's own hands , under one's own steam

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲