disinherit
Americanverb (used with object)
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Law. to exclude from inheritance (an heir or a next of kin).
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to deprive of a heritage, country, right, privilege, etc..
the disinherited peoples of the earth.
verb
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law to deprive (an heir or next of kin) of inheritance or right to inherit
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to deprive of a right or heritage
Other Word Forms
- disinheritance noun
- undisinherited adjective
Etymology
Origin of disinherit
Explanation
When you disinherit someone, you decide not to leave that person anything in your will. Your eccentric grandfather might threaten to disinherit you because of your dirty fingernails. You need to have written a will — a document that lists where you want your money and property to go after your death — in order to disinherit someone. When your wealthy relative actually removes your name from her will, she officially disinherits you. The word inherit is at the heart of disinherit, with its old-fashioned meaning, "make someone an heir." When you add the Latin prefix dis, "not," you take away the inheritance altogether.
Vocabulary lists containing disinherit
Confessions of a Murder Suspect
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Part 3 Vocabulary (Unit 2)
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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.
“A parent can disinherit a child, leaving them nothing,” according to Albertson & Davidson, a law firm with offices across southern California.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 15, 2025
As we divest from its dated narratives and disinherit its archetypes, we need artists who are astute and skilled enough to invent new ones.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 16, 2024
Fleming severed his relationship with Monique after his mother threatened to disinherit him, an act that would reverberate across his lifetime in pangs of sadness and despair.
From Salon • Apr. 25, 2024
Attorneys for two of Franklin's sons had asserted their half-brother Ted White "wants to disinherit" them.
From BBC • Jul. 11, 2023
Peace wanted to get a divorce and change his will to disinherit his wife.
From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann
Definitions 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.
