Owning something is having some rights to use property (either things or land).
A common analogy is that property rights are like a bundle of sticks, and different types of property come with different rights.
Joint ownership comes with different “sticks” than sole ownership (because you can’t change someone else’s property rights by yourself)
Buying a book or a video game comes with different “sticks” than buying a blank notebook (the author or programmer still keep some property rights to the ideas in the book and game, but you can share whatever you want about your notebook).
Your question goes to the heart of property law, and you can find lots of interesting examples of how different societies have thought about property through history.
Square_Category_4611 t1_j9ybgvj wrote
Reply to ELI5 what is ownership? by No-Eggplant-5396
Owning something is having some rights to use property (either things or land). A common analogy is that property rights are like a bundle of sticks, and different types of property come with different rights.
Joint ownership comes with different “sticks” than sole ownership (because you can’t change someone else’s property rights by yourself)
Buying a book or a video game comes with different “sticks” than buying a blank notebook (the author or programmer still keep some property rights to the ideas in the book and game, but you can share whatever you want about your notebook).
Your question goes to the heart of property law, and you can find lots of interesting examples of how different societies have thought about property through history.