bequest
Americannoun
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bequests
plural
-
a disposition in a will.
-
a legacy.
A small bequest allowed her to live independently.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
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 bequethen bequeath
Explanation
When you receive some kind of gift, be it money or property, through a will, that gift is known as a bequest. Your aunt left you a bequest of the earrings she always thought you admired. The noun bequest is something one arranges to give away after death, sort of a gift from beyond the grave. Basically, putting a bequest in a will is a way of making sure the right person will get certain goods after your death. If you are very wealthy, universities and charitable organizations may court you in an attempt to gain bequests for their institutions.
Vocabulary lists containing bequest
Beowulf vocabulary
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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
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Pygmalion
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
A Catholic church in central Massachusetts recently received a $1.5 million bequest from a generous parishioner who has passed away.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 29, 2026
Johns Hopkins opened in 1876 and, funded by a $3.5 million bequest, was America’s first research university.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
The will leaves me a small bequest, along with gifts to several other people whom I don’t know.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Since you wouldn’t have to worry about running out of money in old age, you might travel the world, buy a sports car, or gift an early bequest to heirs.
From Barron's ● May 21, 2026
In the embers of the last days of the Roman Empire we are able, out of centuries of silence, to hear the only living musical bequest of the Ancient World.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
Take, for example, the question of her literal will, which, after a few small bequests to friends and institutions to which she had been connected, left most of her substantial estate to a medical charity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
Reverse mortgages unlock wealth while overcoming the costs and emotional aspects of selling a house, but they can put a serious dent in bequests as fees and interest add up.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
Gold bars, rings and necklaces can be handed down to the next generation as wedding gifts or inheritance bequests.
From Barron's ● Jan. 30, 2026
It’s also likely that the Reiners included charitable bequests in their estate plans.
From Salon ● Dec. 25, 2025
He died in England 1781, his large hearted benevolence showed itself in many bequests to that country that had driven him forth and to which he was an alien.
From The Loyalists of Massachusetts And the Other Side of the American Revolution by James H. Stark
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
