Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
privilege of the floor

privilege of the floor

9.6
The right to enter a parliament or assembly as a non-member and speak during a meeting
  • noun
  • /ˈprɪvɪlɪdʒ əv ðə flɔr/
  • Jargon
translation icon : privilegio de la palabra
  • He received the privilege of the floor, allowing him to address the assembly directly.

Examples

  • Only a few journalists were granted the privilege of the floor during the heated debate.

  • Can non-members ever gain the privilege of the floor?

  • The senator's guests were given the privilege of the floor for the opening ceremony.

  • The senator received the privilege of the floor to speak about the new bill.

  • He received the privilege of the floor, allowing him to address the assembly directly.

  • Only a few journalists were granted the privilege of the floor during the heated debate.

  • The senator's guests were given the privilege of the floor for the opening ceremony.

Synonyms

floor
vsprivilege of the floor
  • Formal
259 7.4

The right to speak during a meeting

is a special permission for non-members to enter and speak during sessions

Antonyms

exclusion
64 4.2

A situation when someone is not allowed to join or take part in a group

prohibition
  • Formal
48 4.4

An official rule that stops people from doing something

Surface Forms

privilege of the floor singular
privileges of the floor plural

Morphology

privilege + of + the + floor

The phrase is directly compositional: 'privilege' means a special right and 'the floor' (in this context) means the right/opportunity to address an assembly, so together they straightforwardly denote the special right to speak in a legislative body. This construction mirrors equivalent expressions in many languages and follows normal noun-of-noun/genitive composition, making it predictable for learners who know the constituent senses.

Etymology

Privilege of the floor comes from meeting rooms where the floor is the main space where members stand and speak. If a visitor was given that 'privilege', they could step onto the floor and speak during the meeting, so today it means 'the right to come onto the floor and speak in an assembly'.