a signature or mark affixed by special privilege to a letter, package, or the like to ensure its transmission free of charge, as by mail.
7.
the privilege of franking letters, packages, etc.
8.
a franked letter, package, etc.
–verb (used with object)
9.
to mark (a letter, package, etc.) for transmission free of the usual charge, by virtue of official or special privilege; send free of charge, as mail.
10.
to convey (a person) free of charge.
11.
to enable to pass or go freely: to frank a visitor through customs.
12.
to facilitate the comings and goings of (a person), esp. in society: A sizable inheritance will frank you faster than anything else.
13.
to secure exemption for.
14.
Carpentry. to assemble (millwork, as sash bars) with a miter joint through the moldings and a butt joint or mortise-and-tenon joint for the rest.
[Origin: 1250–1300; ME < OF franc < LL francus free, orig. Frank]
—Related forms
frank·a·ble, adjective
franker, noun
—Synonyms 1. unrestrained, free, bold, uninhibited. Frank,candid,open,outspoken imply a freedom and boldness in speaking. Frank is applied to one unreserved in expressing the truth and to one's real opinions and sentiments: a frank analysis of a personal problem. Candid suggests that one is sincere and truthful or impartial and fair in judgment, sometimes unpleasantly so: a candid expression of opinion. Open implies a lack of reserve or of concealment: open antagonism. Outspoken applies to a person who expresses himself or herself freely, even when this is inappropriate: an outspoken and unnecessary show of disapproval.
a member of a group of ancient Germanic peoples dwelling in the regions of the Rhine, one division of whom, the Salians, conquered Gaul about a.d. 500, founded an extensive kingdom, and gave origin to the name France.
2.
(in the Levant) any native of western Europe.
[Origin: bef. 900; ME Franke, OE Franca (c. OHG Franko), perh. from the Gmc base of OE franka spear, javelin, a weapon allegedly favored by the Franks]
Anne, 1929–45, German Jewish girl who died in Belsen concentration camp in Germany: her diaries about her family hiding from Nazis in Amsterdam (1942–44) published in 1947.
Open and sincere in expression; straightforward: made several frank remarks about the quality of their work.
Clearly manifest; evident: frank enjoyment.
tr.v.
franked, frank·ing, franks
To put an official mark on (a piece of mail) so that it can be sent free of charge.
To send (mail) free of charge.
To place a stamp or mark on (a piece of mail) to show the payment of postage.
To enable (a person) to come and go freely.
n.
A mark or signature placed on a piece of mail to indicate the right to send it free of charge.
The right to send mail free.
A franked piece of mail.
[Middle English, free, from Old French franc, from Late Latin Francus, Frank; see Frank.]
frank'ness n.
Synonyms: These adjectives mean revealing or disposed to reveal one's thoughts freely and honestly. Frank implies forthrightness, sometimes to the point of bluntness: "Be calm and frank, and confess at once all that weighs on your heart" (Emily Brontë).
Candid often suggests refusal to evade difficult or unpleasant issues: "Save, save, oh save me from the candid friend!" (George Canning).
Outspoken usually implies bold lack of reserve: The outspoken activist protested the budget cuts. Straightforward denotes directness of manner and expression: "George was a straightforward soul....'See here!' he said. 'Are you engaged to anybody?'" (Booth Tarkington).
Open suggests freedom from all trace of reserve or secretiveness: "I will be open and sincere with you" (Joseph Addison).
FrankAudio Help (frāngk) Pronunciation Key
n.
A member of one of the Germanic tribes of the Rhine region in the early Christian era, especially one of the Salian Franks who conquered Gaul about A.D. 500 and established an extensive empire that reached its greatest power in the ninth century.
[Middle English, from Old English Franca and Old French Franc, both from Late Latin Francus, of Germanic origin.]
FrankAudio Help (frāngk, frängk) Pronunciation Key
German Jewish diarist who fled from Nazi Germany to Amsterdam with her family (1933) and kept a diary during her years in hiding (1942-1944). She and her family were captured (August 1944) and sent to concentration camps. Anne died of typhus in the camp at Belsen. Her diary was published in 1947.
c.1300, from O.Fr. franc "free, sincere, genuine," from M.L. Franc "a freeman, a Frank," one of the Gmc. people that conquered Celtic Gaul from the Romans c.500 C.E. and called it France, from Frankish *Frank (cf. O.H.G. Franko, O.E. Franca). The connection is that only Franks, as the conquering class, had the status of freemen. Sense of "outspoken" first recorded in Eng. 1548 (frankly in this sense is from c.1540). The origin of the ethnic name is uncertain; it traditionally is said to be from the old Gmc. word *frankon "javelin, lance" (cf. O.E. franca; also Saxon, traditionally from root of O.E. seax "knife"), their preferred weapon, but the opposite may be the case. In the Levant, this was the name given to anyone of Western nationality (cf. Feringhee). Verbal sense of "to free a letter for carriage or an article for publication" (1708) is from Fr. affranchir, from the same source.
characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion; "blunt talking and straight shooting"; "a blunt New England farmer"; "I gave them my candid opinion"; "forthright criticism"; "a forthright approach to the problem"; "tell me what you think--and you may just as well be frank"; "it is possible to be outspoken without being rude"; "plainspoken and to the point"; "a point-blank accusation" [syn: blunt]
2.
clearly manifest; evident; "frank enjoyment"
noun
1.
a member of the ancient Germanic peoples who spread from the Rhine into the Roman Empire in the 4th century
2.
a smooth-textured sausage of minced beef or pork usually smoked; often served on a bread roll
verb
1.
stamp with a postmark to indicate date and time of mailing [syn: postmark]
2.
exempt by means of an official pass or letter, as from customs or other checks
Can*did\ (k[a^]n"d[i^]d), a. [F. candide (cf. It. candido), L. candidus white, fr. cand[=e]re to be of a glowing white; akin to accend[e^]re, incend[e^]re, to set on fire, Skr. chand to shine. Cf. Candle, Incense.]1. White. [Obs.] The box receives all black; but poured from thence, The stones came candid forth, the hue of innocence. --Dryden. 2. Free from undue bias; disposed to think and judge according to truth and justice, or without partiality or prejudice; fair; just; impartial; as, a candid opinion. "Candid and dispassionate men." --W. Irving. 3. Open; frank; ingenuous; outspoken. Syn: Fair; open; ingenuous; impartial; just; frank; artless; unbiased; equitable. Usage: Candid, Fair, Open, Frank, Ingenuous. A man is fair when he puts things on a just or equitable footing; he is candid when be looks impartially on both sides of a subject, doing justice especially to the motives and conduct of an opponent; he is open and frank when he declares his sentiments without reserve; he is ingenuous when he does this from a noble regard for truth. Fair dealing; candid investigation; an open temper; a frank disposition; an ingenuous answer or declaration.
Franc\, n. [F., fr. franc a Franc. See Frank, a.] A silver coin of France, and since 1795 the unit of the French monetary system. It has been adopted by Belgium and Swizerland. It is equivalent to about nineteen cents, or ten pence, and is divided into 100 centimes.
Fran"chise\ (? or ?; 277), n. [F., fr. franc, fem. franche, free. See Frank, a.]1. Exemption from constraint or oppression; freedom; liberty. [Obs.] --Spenser. 2. (LAw) A particular privilege conferred by grant from a sovereign or a government, and vested in individuals; an imunity or exemption from ordinary jurisdiction; a constitutional or statutory right or privilege, esp. the right to vote. Election by universal suffrage, as modified by the Constitution, is the one crowning franchise of the American people. --W. H. Seward. 3. The district or jurisdiction to which a particular privilege extends; the limits of an immunity; hence, an asylum or sanctuary. Churches and mobasteries in Spain are franchises for criminals. --London Encyc. 4. Magnanimity; generosity; liberality; frankness; nobility. "Franchise in woman." [Obs.] --Chaucer. Elective franchise, the privilege or right of voting in an election of public officers.
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Audio Help [frangk] Pronunciation Key adjective, -er, -est, noun, verb 
