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

Probate documents filed July 8 in Los Angeles County Superior Court say Chase — legal name Daveigh Elizabeth Schwallier — left behind about $400,000 in personal property.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 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

Throughout most of U.S. history, presidential records have been treated as the president’s personal property.

From Salon ● Apr. 17, 2026

Its efforts include a proposed ballot measure that would bar retroactive taxes, as well as banning new taxes on personal property, including retirement savings, stocks, bonds and intellectual property.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 17, 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