bequeath

[bih-kweeth, -kweeth]

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verb (used with object)

to dispose of (personal property, especially money) by last will: She bequeathed her half of the company to her niece.

to hand down; pass on.

Obsolete. to commit; entrust.

Origin of bequeath

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

Related formsbe·queath·a·ble, adjectivebe·queath·al, be·queath·ment, nounbe·queath·er, nounun·be·queath·a·ble, adjectiveun·be·queathed, adjective

Synonyms for bequeath

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1. will, impart, leave, bestow, grant, consign.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for bequeathal

endowment, inheritance, settlement, legacy, estate, gift, devise, dower, bestowal, heritage, trust, devisal, ancestry, bequeathal, bequeathment

British Dictionary definitions for bequeathal

bequeath

verb (tr)

law to dispose of (property, esp personal property) by willCompare devise (def. 2)

to hand down; pass on, as to following generations

Derived Formsbequeather, nounbequeathal, noun

Word Origin for bequeath

Old English becwethan; related to Old Norse kvetha to speak, Gothic qithan, Old High German quethan

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for bequeathal

bequeath

Old English becweðan "to say, speak to, exhort, blame," also "leave by will;" from be- + cweðan "to say," from Proto-Germanic *kwithan, from PIE *gwet- "to say, speak."

Original sense of "say, utter" died out 13c., leaving legal sense of "transfer by will." Closely related to bequest. "An old word kept alive in wills" [OED 1st ed.]. Old English bequeðere meant "interpreter, translator." Related: Bequeathed; bequeathing.