prerogative

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun An exclusive right or privilege held by a person or group, especially a hereditary or official right. synonym: right.
• noun The exclusive right and power to command, decide, rule, or judge.
• adjective Of, arising from, or exercising a prerogative.

from The Century Dictionary.

• To endow with a prerogative.
• Called upon to vote first; having the right to vote first.
• Entitled to precedence; superior.
• Pertaining to, characteristic of, or held by prerogative or privileged right.
• noun The right of voting first; precedence in voting.
• noun A peculiar privilege; a characteristic right inhering in one's nature; a special property or quality.
• noun Specifically, a privilege inherent in one's office or position; an official right; an exclusive or sovereign privilege, in theory subject to no restriction or interference, but practically often limited by other similar rights or prerogatives; more specifically still, the royal prerogative.
• noun Precedence; superiority in power, rank, or quality.
• noun In New Jersey, a court held by the chancellor sitting as ordinary in probate and similar causes.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun An exclusive or peculiar privilege; prior and indefeasible right; fundamental and essential possession; -- used generally of an official and hereditary right which may be asserted without question, and for the exercise of which there is no responsibility or accountability as to the fact and the manner of its exercise.
• noun obsolete Precedence; preëminence; first rank.
• noun (Eng. Law) a court which formerly had authority in the matter of wills and administrations, where the deceased left bona notabilia, or effects of the value of five pounds, in two or more different dioceses.
• noun the office in which wills proved in the Prerogative Court were registered.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun A hereditary or official right or privilege.
• noun A right, or power that is exclusive to a monarch etc, especially such a power to make a decision or judgement.
• noun A right, generally
• noun A property, attribute or ability which gives one a superiority or advantage over others; an inherent advantage or privilege; a talent.
• adjective Having a hereditary or official right or privilege.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun a right reserved exclusively by a particular person or group (especially a hereditary or official right)