bequeath
[bih-kweeth , -kweeth]
- 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.
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Origin of bequeath
Synonyms
See more synonyms for bequeath on Thesaurus.com1. will, impart, leave, bestow, grant, consign.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
bequeath
- law to dispose of (property, esp personal property) by willCompare devise (def. 2)
- to hand down; pass on, as to following generations
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Word Origin
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
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Word Origin and History for bequeathal
bequeath
v.
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.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper