entail

American  

[en-teyl, en-teyl, en-teyl] / ɛnˈteɪl, ɛnˈteɪl, ˈɛn teɪl /

verb (used with object)

1. to cause or involve by necessity or as a consequence.

   a loss entailing no regret.

2. to impose as a burden.

   Success entails hard work.

3. Law. to limit the passage of (real estate) to a specified line of heirs, so that it cannot be transferred or bequeathed to anyone else.

4. Law. to cause (anything) to descend to a fixed series of possessors.

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noun

1. the act of entailing.

2. Law. the state of being entailed.

3. any predetermined order of succession, as to an office.

4. Law. something that is entailed, as an estate.

5. Law. the rule of descent settled for an estate.

entail British  

/ ɪnˈteɪl /

verb

1. to bring about or impose by necessity; have as a necessary consequence

   this task entails careful thought

2. property law to restrict (the descent of an estate) to a designated line of heirs

3. logic to have as a necessary consequence

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noun

1. property law

   1. the restriction imposed by entailing an estate

   2. an estate that has been entailed

Other Word Forms

• entailer noun
• entailment noun
• preentail verb (used with object)

Etymology

Origin of entail

First recorded in 1350–1400; from Middle English entailen (verb), entail (noun), equivalent to en- ¹ + tail ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

But jobs that entailed doing more routine cognitive work such as typists and back-office bookkeepers—roles that had once promised a solid path to the middle class—were no longer so vital.

From The Wall Street Journal

Common throughout the show is the juxtaposition of art that holds out optimistic visions of technology’s possibilities with works that put forward more depressing perspectives about the harms it can entail.

From The Wall Street Journal

Substituting another gas would entail completely reconfiguring the system, says Tang.

From Barron's

Substituting another gas would entail completely reconfiguring the system, says Tang.

From Barron's

Specifics on when the review would begin, and what it would entail, have not yet been set, but Luna said the aim is to get an outside, “unbiased view.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bring about
• call for
• encompass
• involve
• lead to
• necessitate
• require