bequest

[ bih-kwest ]

/ bɪˈkwɛst /

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noun

a disposition in a will.

a legacy: A small bequest allowed her to live independently.

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Origin of bequest

1250–1300; Middle English biqueste,biquyste, equivalent to bi-be- + quiste will, bequest, Old English -cwis(se) (with excrescent t, as in behest), noun derivative of cwethan to say; on the model of bequethenbequeath

Words nearby bequest

plugged in, be, Be Prepared, put to it, be, put upon, be, bequeath, bequest, berachah, berakah, berakhah, Béranger, Berar

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use bequest in a sentence

Launched at the start of the 20th century with a bequest from the man who invented dynamite, the Nobel Prizes have often proved explosive.
A Nobel Pursuit Gone Wrong?|Tracy Moran|October 11, 2020|Ozy
Muth called police to say she died from a fall, and told her family he was owed a bequest of $250,000.
Georgetown Socialite Viola Drath Killed by Assassin, Husband Claims|Sandra McElwaine|November 19, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The bequest to Tolson was the final word on the closeness of their relationship.
Hoover’s Secret Files|Ronald Kessler|August 2, 2011|DAILY BEAST
This latter, however, includes some 500 volumes of the Herries bequest.
Report of the Chief Librarian for the Year 1924-25|General Assembly Library (New Zealand)

Dividends that are declared after a grant or bequest, though earned before, go to the legatee as income.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman|Albert Sidney Bolles
A bequest of money securities includes a note secured by mortgage.
Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman|Albert Sidney Bolles
This woman had three sisters, four brothers, and three uncles, who would have shared with her the pauper's bequest.
Repertory Of The Comedie Humaine, Complete, A -- Z|Anatole Cerfberr and Jules Franois Christophe
Few members of the Society, perhaps, are aware, either of the bequest or of its annual payment.
Decline of Science in England|Charles Babbage

British Dictionary definitions for bequest

bequest

/ (bɪˈkwɛst) /

noun

the act of bequeathing
something that is bequeathed

law a gift of property by will, esp personal propertyCompare devise (def. 4), devise (def. 5)

Word Origin for bequest

C14: be- + Old English -cwiss degree; see bequeath

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

bequest

Origin of bequest

Words nearby bequest

Words related to bequest

How to use bequest in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bequest

Word Origin for bequest