bequeaths

be·queath

(bĭ-kwēth′, -kwēth′)

tr.v. be·queathed, be·queath·ing, be·queaths

1. Law To leave or give (personal property) by will.

2. To pass (something) on to another; hand down: bequeathed to their children a respect for hard work.

[Middle English biquethen, from Old English becwethan : be-, be- + cwethan, to say; see g^wet- in Indo-European roots.]

be·queath′al, be·queath′ment n.

be·queath′er n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

bequeath

(bɪˈkwiːð; -ˈkwiːθ)

vb (tr)

1. (Law) law to dispose of (property, esp personal property) by will. Compare devise²

2. to hand down; pass on, as to following generations

[Old English becwethan; related to Old Norse kvetha to speak, Gothic qithan, Old High German quethan]

beˈqueather n

beˈqueathal n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

be•queath

(bɪˈkwið, -ˈkwiθ)

v.t.

1. to dispose of (property or money) by last will.

2. to hand down; pass on.

[before 1000; Middle English bequethen, Old English becwethan=be- be- + cwethan to say (see quoth)]

be•queath′a•ble, adj.

be•queath′al, be•queath′ment, n.

be•queath′er, n.

bequeath

- Etymologically, what you bequeath is what you "say" you will leave someone in your will—but the original sense "say, utter" died out, leaving the legal sense.

bequeath

Past participle: bequeathed
Gerund: bequeathing

Imperative
bequeath
bequeath

Present
I bequeath
you bequeath
he/she/it bequeaths
we bequeath
you bequeath
they bequeath

Preterite
I bequeathed
you bequeathed
he/she/it bequeathed
we bequeathed
you bequeathed
they bequeathed

Present Continuous
I am bequeathing
you are bequeathing
he/she/it is bequeathing
we are bequeathing
you are bequeathing
they are bequeathing

Present Perfect
I have bequeathed
you have bequeathed
he/she/it has bequeathed
we have bequeathed
you have bequeathed
they have bequeathed

Past Continuous
I was bequeathing
you were bequeathing
he/she/it was bequeathing
we were bequeathing
you were bequeathing
they were bequeathing

Past Perfect
I had bequeathed
you had bequeathed
he/she/it had bequeathed
we had bequeathed
you had bequeathed
they had bequeathed

Future
I will bequeath
you will bequeath
he/she/it will bequeath
we will bequeath
you will bequeath
they will bequeath

Future Perfect
I will have bequeathed
you will have bequeathed
he/she/it will have bequeathed
we will have bequeathed
you will have bequeathed
they will have bequeathed

Future Continuous
I will be bequeathing
you will be bequeathing
he/she/it will be bequeathing
we will be bequeathing
you will be bequeathing
they will be bequeathing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been bequeathing
you have been bequeathing
he/she/it has been bequeathing
we have been bequeathing
you have been bequeathing
they have been bequeathing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been bequeathing
you will have been bequeathing
he/she/it will have been bequeathing
we will have been bequeathing
you will have been bequeathing
they will have been bequeathing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been bequeathing
you had been bequeathing
he/she/it had been bequeathing
we had been bequeathing
you had been bequeathing
they had been bequeathing

Conditional
I would bequeath
you would bequeath
he/she/it would bequeath
we would bequeath
you would bequeath
they would bequeath

Past Conditional
I would have bequeathed
you would have bequeathed
he/she/it would have bequeathed
we would have bequeathed
you would have bequeathed
they would have bequeathed

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Verb

bequeath - leave or give by will after one's death; "My aunt bequeathed me all her jewelry"; "My grandfather left me his entire estate"

leave behind, leave - be survived by after one's death; "He left six children"; "At her death, she left behind her husband and 11 cats"

gift, present, give - give as a present; make a gift of; "What will you give her for her birthday?"

devise - give by will, especially real property

pass on - give to or transfer possession of; "She passed the family jewels on to her daughter-in-law"

impart, pass on, give, leave - transmit (knowledge or skills); "give a secret to the Russians"; "leave your name and address here"; "impart a new skill to the students"

remember - show appreciation to; "He remembered her in his will"

fee-tail, entail - limit the inheritance of property to a specific class of heirs

disinherit, disown - prevent deliberately (as by making a will) from inheriting

bequeath

verb

1. leave, will, give, grant, commit, transmit, hand down, endow, bestow, entrust, leave to by will He bequeathed all his silver to his children.

2. give, offer, accord, grant, afford, contribute, yield, lend, pass on, transmit, confer, bestow, impart It is true that colonialism did not bequeath much to Africa.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

bequeath

verb

1. Law. To give (property) to another person after one's death:

2. To convey (something) from one generation to the next:

Translations

يوصِي، يورِثُ

odkázatzanechat

testamentere

luovuttaatestamentata

hagyományoz

ánafna í erfîaskrá

palikti testamentu

novēlēt

bequeath

[bɪˈkwiːð] VT → legar

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

bequeath

[bɪˈkwiːð] vt

[+ money, property] → léguer
to bequeath sb sth, to bequeath sth to sb → léguer qch à qn

bequeath

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

bequeath

(biˈkwiːð) verb

to leave (personal belongings) by will. She bequeathed her art collection to the town.

bequest (biˈkwest) noun

something bequeathed in a will. I received a bequest in my uncle's will.