estate

American  

[ih-steyt] / ɪˈsteɪt /

noun

1. a piece of landed property, especially one of large extent with an elaborate house on it.

   to have an estate in the country.

2. Law.

   1. property or possessions.

   2. the legal position or status of an owner, considered with respect to property owned in land or other things.

   3. the degree or quantity of interest that a person has in land with respect to the nature of the right, its duration, or its relation to the rights of others.

   4. interest, ownership, or property in land or other things.

   5. the property of a deceased person, a bankrupt, etc., viewed as an aggregate.

3. British. a housing development.

4. a period or condition of life.

   to attain to man's estate.

5. a major political or social group or class, especially one once having specific political powers, as the clergy, nobles, and commons in France or the lords spiritual, lords temporal, and commons in England.

6. condition or circumstances with reference to worldly prosperity, estimation, etc.; social status or rank.

7. Obsolete. pomp or state.

8. Obsolete. high social status or rank.

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verb (used with object)

estated, estating

1. Obsolete. to establish in or as in an estate.

estate British  

/ ɪˈsteɪt /

noun

1. a large piece of landed property, esp in the country

2. a large area of property development, esp of new houses or ( trading estate ) of factories

3. property law

   1. property or possessions

   2. the nature of interest that a person has in land or other property, esp in relation to the right of others

   3. the total extent of the real and personal property of a deceased person or bankrupt

4. Also called: estate of the realm.  an order or class of persons in a political community, regarded collectively as a part of the body politic: usually regarded as being the lords temporal (peers), lords spiritual, and commons See also States General fourth estate

5. state, period, or position in life, esp with regard to wealth or social standing

   youth's estate

   a poor man's estate

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Related Words

See property.

Etymology

Origin of estate

1175–1225; Middle English estat < Middle French; cognate with Provençal estat. See state

Example Sentences

That same day, real estate developer Rick Caruso reaffirmed his decision not to run.

From Los Angeles Times

I settled my father’s estate, but found a will deeding a mobile home to his stepson.

From MarketWatch

She rents a two-bedroom apartment for $2,700 a month and isn’t interested in buying real estate but wonders if it would be a wise diversification move.

From The Wall Street Journal

The “Qatar City” proposal was part of a bid put together by Lee and Associates, another real estate firm.

From Salon

Always an assiduous public-image crafter, George Washington paid meticulous attention to both his personal appearance and that of his beloved Mount Vernon estate, where he constantly received friends, associates and admirers.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• area
• farm
• parcel
• plantation
• ranch
• residence