nuncupative

American  

[nuhng-kyuh-pey-tiv, nuhng-kyoo-puh-tiv] / ˈnʌŋ kyəˌpeɪ tɪv, nʌŋˈkyu pə tɪv /

adjective

1. (especially of a will) oral; not written.

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nuncupative British  

/ nʌŋˈkjuːpətɪv, ˈnʌŋkjʊˌpeɪtɪv /

adjective

1. (of a will) declared orally by the testator and later written down

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Etymology

Origin of nuncupative

First recorded in 1400–50; from Medieval Latin (testāmentum) nuncupātīvum “oral (will),” neuter of Late Latin nuncupātīvus “so-called, nominal,” equivalent to Latin nuncupāt(us), past participle of nuncupāre “to state formally, utter the name of” (probably from unattested nōmicupāre, derivative of nōmiceps “one taking a name,” equivalent to nōmi- combining form of nōmen “name” + -ceps “taker, catcher”); see prince ( def. )) + -īvus -ive ( def. )

Example Sentences

He left me a small Legacy in a nuncupative Will, as a Token of his Kindness for me, and he left me once more to the wide World.

From Benjamin Franklin Representative selections, with introduction, bibliograpy, and notes by Jorgenson, Chester E.

A will of this kind is called a nuncupative will.

From The Government Class Book Designed for the Instruction of Youth in the Principles of Constitutional Government and the Rights and Duties of Citizens. by Young, Andrew W.

By a nuncupative will, he left a house in London to his wife, a house in Acton and a meadow to his daughter Elizabeth, and his study of books to his son-in-law Thomas Nash.

From Shakespeare's Family by Stopes, C. C. (Charlotte Carmichael)

In a nuncupative will spoken the 14th ofApril, a copy of which is before the writer, he left his books and manuscripts to the Sion Col ege Library.

From Thomas Hariot, the Mathematician, the Philosopher and the Scholar by Stevens, Henry

The will of the Minstrel of Paradise is a nuncupative one taken by his daughter, the great poet being blind.

From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 17, No. 494, June 18, 1831 by Various