equal opportunity meaning: definition, etymology

equal opportunity

nounalso spelled equal-opportunity

A state of fairness in which individuals are treated similarly, unhampered by artificial barriers, prejudices, or preferences, especially in employment, education and other areas of public life.

Related terms: reverse discrimination

equal-opportunity

adj

Etymology Comes from equal-opportunity employer and similar phrases, where it is used literally to mean that the opportunity for employment is available equally to all, regardless of, for example, an applicant's race.

Humorous Targeting everyone indiscriminately.

equal-opportunity insulter

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — authors: page histories for equal opportunity and equal-opportunity.