own

Less common meanings

4. 4
   not be ashamedverbtransitive

   To acknowledge something about oneself proudly, without shame or embarrassment.

   He learned to own his accent instead of hiding it.

   Survivors who own their stories often help others heal.

   UsageInformal; often in the set phrase own it: wear what you like and own it.

   Similarembrace, accept

   Oppositehide, conceal, deny

   Note

   The acknowledging sense with pride in place of reluctance. A character in Dan Shive's webcomic El Goonish Shive (2014) says "I'm owning my girly looks." Where the older "admit" senses concede a fault, this one embraces a trait. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

   • The cited installment of Dan Shive’s webcomic El Goonish Shive was published in 2014. en.wiktionary.org
   • A character says “I'm owning my girly looks,” as an excerpt of a longer sentence. en.wiktionary.org
5. 5
   verbtransitive

   To defeat, humiliate, or outdo someone completely, especially in a game, contest, or argument.

   Never get into a political debate with Priya, because she will own you in front of everyone.

   His sharp rebuttal completely owned the heckler.

   UsageCommon in the passive too: he got owned in the debate.

   Similardestroy, crush, humiliate, demolish, trounce

6. 6
   verbtransitive

   To admit or acknowledge that something is true, valid, or one's fault (often 'own to' or 'own up').

   Critics must own that the early reviews were unfair.

   She freely owned the weakness of her case.

   UsageOften own that + clause or own up to something: he owned up to the mistake. It must be owned sounds formal.

   Similaradmit, acknowledge, concede, confess, grant

   Oppositedeny, disclaim

   Note

   Thomas Carlyle's "It must be owned" (1843) is a set formula for conceding a point before moving on. In The Tempest, Prospero's "you must know and own" pairs it with know, as he tells the lords that two of the drunken servants are theirs. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

   • Thomas Carlyle used the words "It must be owned" in Past and Present. gutenberg.org
   • The Carlyle quotation dates to a work first published in 1843. en.wikipedia.org
   • Prospero says "you must know and own" in The Tempest, pairing own with know and addressing the lords about two of the men. shakespeare.mit.edu
   • The two men whom Prospero tells the lords to acknowledge are drunken servants. shakespeare.mit.edu
7. 7
   control fullyverbtransitive

   To dominate or control someone so completely as to figuratively enslave them.

   Fear can own us long after the danger has passed.

   Greed owned the old merchant to his final day.

   Similardominate, control, consume, rule, possess

8. 8
   be greatverbslangintransitive

   To be extremely good or impressive.

   Their new album owns.

   Honestly, these noise-canceling headphones own.

   Similarrock, rule

   Oppositesuck, stink

   Note

   Here the verb turns intransitive and the praise falls on the subject. Nothing is defeated; the album or the gadget simply owns. It is slang for enthusiastic approval, from the same family as the "defeat" meaning but with no opponent in sight.

9. 9
   crushing insultnouncountable

   A crushing, humiliating insult, especially one that decisively wins an exchange.

   His reply was the kind of own that ends a debate.

   The audience cheered at such a devastating own.

   Similarburn, zinger, put-down, comeback

   Note

   It belongs to online argument, where a reply or screenshot that humiliates an opponent counts as one. A 2023 tweet by @__Happyface mocks people who think they have landed "the biggest own". It grows out of the "defeat or embarrass" verb. Source

   Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • Wiktionary attributes the quoted tweet to @__Happyface and dates it to 10 June 2023; its wording supports the description of the mockery. en.wiktionary.org
10. 10
    hack (computer)verbslangtransitive

    To gain illicit superuser or root access to a computer system, thereby controlling all of its files.

    The intruders owned the mail server and read every stored message.

    Once attackers own a host, they can reach every account on it.

    UsageFormal reports say a system was compromised or attackers gained root access instead.

    Similarpwn

    Note

    The security world's version of the slang: owning a machine means holding root, so every file on it is yours. A 1996 Usenet post by The Happiest Dragon Alive!! spells it in hacker style, "TH15 5Y5T3M 15 0WN3D". The variant 0wn comes from the same playful spelling, while pwn is usually traced to a typo, since p sits next to o on the keyboard.

11. 11
    adjectiveobsolete

    Peculiar or native to a person or place; belonging to one's own country rather than coming from abroad.

    Note

    A survival from the word's oldest meaning: Old English āgen meant "own, proper, peculiar," and it began as the past participle of the verb āgan. Here own stands bare, with no possessive in front, marking what belongs characteristically to one person or place. That bare use has died out. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • The sense preserves an Old English meaning of āgen: own, proper, peculiar. en.wiktionary.org
    • Āgen originated as the past participle of āgan. en.wiktionary.org
    • Historically, own could occur without a preceding possessive; that construction became obsolete. researchgate.net
12. 12
    verbdated

    To claim something or someone as belonging to oneself.