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tenant
[ ten-uhnt ]
/ ˈtɛn ənt /
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noun
a person or group that rents and occupies land, a house, an office, or the like, from another for a period of time; lessee.
Law. a person who holds or possesses for a time lands, tenements, or personalty of another, usually for rent.
an occupant or inhabitant of any place.
verb (used with object)
to hold or occupy as a tenant; dwell in; inhabit.
verb (used without object)
to dwell or live (usually followed by in).
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Origin of tenant
1250–1300; Middle English tena(u)nt<Anglo-French; Middle French tenant, noun use of present participle of tenir to hold ≪ Latin tenēre.See -ant
OTHER WORDS FROM tenant
WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH tenant
tenant , tenetWords nearby tenant
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use tenant in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for tenant
tenant
/ (ˈtɛnənt) /
noun
a person who holds, occupies, or possesses land or property by any kind of right or title, esp from a landlord under a lease
a person who has the use of a house, flat, etc, subject to the payment of rent
any holder or occupant
verb
(tr) to hold (land or property) as a tenant
(intr foll by in) rare to dwell
Derived forms of tenant
tenantable, adjectivetenantless, adjectivetenant-like, adjectiveWord Origin for tenant
C14: from Old French, literally: (one who is) holding, from tenir to hold, from Latin tenēre
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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