estate

American  

[ih-stayt] / ɪˈsteɪt /

noun

• estates
  plural

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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Synonym Usage

See property.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• estates
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of estate

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

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Explanation

The word estate is mostly used to mean a massive and fabulous house on a big piece of land. When you own an estate, it usually means you have a whole lot of money to go along with it. While an estate refers mostly to land and a house on it, it can also refer to all of a person’s possessions — and this sense of the word is often used after someone has died to refer to everything they are leaving behind. “You are set to inherit half of your grandfather’s estate, which includes his entire collection of stuffed raccoons.” In the past (and sometimes still) estate was also used to refer to someone’s state or condition, as well as his or her social standing.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

estate estates estated

“Also outperforming have been real estate equities, where share prices have possibly begun to take a ‘look through’ view on feelings that trough valuations may have already been reached,” UBS strategist Richard Schellbach says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 3, 2026

Hu, who works in real estate and construction, has lived for two decades on a street in Ashburn, Va., that backs up to a wooded conservation easement where, she thought, nothing could be built.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026

Inside, a modern, open-concept floor plan adds to the tranquil vibe of the estate.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 2, 2026

He was initially attracted by his seeming authenticity and background as a New York real estate developer.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2026

It was found by Svetlana, the grim-faced servant who did more than her share of work around the estate.

From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood

They were grandees of enormous estates where cattle mostly tended themselves until they were rounded up and sold for their hides, which came to be called “Yankee dollars.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

It’s also not hard to imagine the estates of Big Mama Thornton and Arthur Crudup — should any such entities exist — scoffing at those headlines.

From Salon ● Oct. 30, 2026

For families with complex estates, consolidating accounts and assets under one trustee can help everything run more smoothly.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2026

Juan Munoz-Oca, the estates director for Marchesi Antinori’s U.S. business, said he learned of the theft Thursday morning.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

A small cadre of couriers has begun moving things to country estates.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

When Barrington was a great estated gentleman with a vast fortune at his command, it cost him wonderfully little thought to contract a loan, or even to sell a farm.

From Barrington Volume II (of II) by Charles James Lever

In fact, Gleeson stood before the public as a kind of guardian of estated property,—the providence of dowagers, widows, and younger children!

From The Knight Of Gwynne, Vol. II (of II) by Charles James Lever

He was an estated gentleman, and songs were made about his family.

From Three Plays by Padraic Colum

I mean, of course, of the elder branch, for there are swarms of the others, well to do and prosperous also, and with fine estated properties.

From A Day's Ride A Life's Romance by Charles James Lever

Had Thady Macdermot had ready money, it might have been well built; but though an estated gentleman, he had none.

From The Macdermots of Ballycloran by Anthony Trollope

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Related Words

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

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