bequeath

American  

[bih-kweeth, -kweeth] / bɪˈkwiθ, -ˈkwið /

verb (used with object)

1. to dispose of (personal property, especially money) by last will.

   She bequeathed her half of the company to her niece.

   Synonyms:

   consign, grant, bestow, leave, impart, will

2. to hand down; pass on.

3. Obsolete. to commit; entrust.

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bequeath British  

/ bɪˈkwiːð, -ˈkwiːθ /

verb

1. law to dispose of (property, esp personal property) by will Compare devise

2. to hand down; pass on, as to following generations

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Other Word Forms

• bequeathable
  adjective
• bequeathal
  noun
• bequeather
  noun
• bequeathment
  noun
• unbequeathable
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of bequeath

First recorded before 1000; Middle English bequethen, Old English becwethan ( be- be- + cwethan “to say” ( see quoth), cognate with Old High German quedan, Gothic qithan )

Explanation

To bequeath is to leave your possessions to another person after you die. A man might love his classic cars but would be happy to bequeath them to his grandchildren when he writes out his last will and testament. Bequeath often is used about making plans to give away property and possessions after a person's death, like the pearl necklace that your great-grandmother bequeathed to you or a house that your uncle bequeathed to a his favorite charity. Sometimes bequeath is used for things handed down without death, as when living parents and grandparents pass, or bequeath, a legacy of stories or family traits and talents as an inheritance.

Example Sentences

O minstrel galleons of Carib fire, Bequeath us to no earthly shore until Is answered in the vortex of our grave The seal's wide spindrift gaze toward paradise.

From Time Magazine Archive

Another Athens shall arise,   And to remoter time Bequeath, like sunset to the skies,   The splendour of its prime; And leave, if naught so bright may live, All earth can take or Heaven can give.

From Bulchevy's Book of English Verse by Quiller-Couch, Arthur Thomas, Sir

Leave thy dagger with me; Bequeath me something—Not one kiss at parting!

From Venice Preserved A Tragedy in Five Acts by Boucicault, Dion

Come; I'll fill your grave up: stir; nay, come away; Bequeath to death your numbness, for from him Dear life redeems you.—You perceive she stirs.

From The Winter's Tale by Shakespeare, William

Bequeath the enchanted table to whichever of your three nephews discovers the inner spell which governs it.

From Fairies Afield by Molesworth, Mrs. (Mary Louisa)

Related Words

• bestow
• entrust
• hand down
• impart
• pass on