personal property

American  

noun

Law.

1. an estate or property consisting of movable articles both corporeal, as furniture or jewelry, or incorporeal, as stocks or bonds (distinguished from real property).

   Synonyms:

   effects, chattel

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personal property British  

noun

1. Also called: personalty.  law movable property, such as furniture or money Compare real property

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personal property Cultural  

1. Furniture, automobiles, boats, and other possessions that are not included in the category of real property.

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Etymology

Origin of personal property

First recorded in 1830–40

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

personal property

The founder of Evergrande, the property giant at the centre of China's housing market slump, has been sentenced to life in prison and had all of his personal property confiscated.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

"The United States is the only country in the world where fossils like this are considered personal property," Cassandra Hatton, head of science and natural history at Sotheby's, told AFP before the auction.

From Barron's ● Jul. 14, 2026

Some jurisdictions also levy eye-watering personal property taxes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026

A federal judge has found that the city of Los Angeles violated the constitutional rights of homeless people by seizing and destroying their personal property during cleanups.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 12, 2026

"I'm not dramatizing anything, it's my personal property that happens to be lying on my desk."

From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison