inherited

American  

[in-her-i-tid] / ɪnˈhɛr ɪ tɪd /

adjective

1. received from or as if from one’s predecessors.

   Their wealth is from inherited properties, mostly through the estate of their mother’s parents.

   For the novelist Henry James, history, tradition, precedence, and established forms constituted the inherited wisdom of civilization.

2. received through genetic transmission.

   the family’s inherited trait of straight blond hair;

   kidney problems symptomatic of an inherited disorder.

3. Baseball. (of a base runner) allowed on base by a previous pitcher.

   The unlucky reliever balked, hit a batter, threw a wild pitch, allowed an inherited runner to score, and got only one out.

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Other Word Forms

• half-inherited adjective
• noninherited adjective
• quasi-inherited adjective
• uninherited adjective

Etymology

Origin of inherited

First recorded in 1795–1800; inherit ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Much of that attention centered on a fraud case he inherited when he took office.

From Salon

Don’t miss: ‘I’m rich in everything but parents’: I inherited $400K.

From MarketWatch

A third of America’s billionaires have inherited their wealth.

From The Wall Street Journal

Or, “You’re so good at math—wonder who you inherited that from?”

From Literature

This provided clear evidence of acromesomelic dysplasia, Maroteaux type -- a very rare inherited disorder characterized by severe short stature and significant shortening of the limbs.

From Science Daily