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inheritance definition

in·her·it·ance (in her′i təns)

noun

  1. the action of inheriting
  2. something inherited or to be inherited; legacy; bequest
  3. ownership by virtue of birthright; right to inherit
  4. anything received as if by inheritance from a predecessor
  5. any characteristic passed on by heredity

Etymology: ME inheritauns < Anglo-Fr & OFr enheritance

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

business inheritance definition - business

finance inheritance definition - finance

law inheritance definition - legal

medical inheritance definition - medical

inheritance Synonyms

inheritance

n.

legacy, bequest, patrimony, heritage; see estate 2, gift 1. See syn. study at heritage.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

inheritance Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • forfeit: He has paid the redemption price of the forfeited inheritance.

Adjective modifier

  • Mendelian: OMIM Home Page ( Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man ) A reference resource on inherited diseases, interlinked to other genome databases.

Modifies a noun

  • tax: There is no inheritance tax payable on assets left to spouses.

Noun used with modifier

  • thine: A good blunt fellow: why being yonger born Doth he lay claime to thine inheritance?

Preposition: in

  • kingdom: Doctrine: That it is an evident truth that all unclean persons have no inheritance in the kingdom of God and of Christ.

Preposition: of

  • saint: Art thou " meet to be partaker of the inheritance of the saints in light " ?
inheritance usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

inheritance quotes

I'm spending my children's inheritance.

-Anonymous

Thou art my Son: this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.

-Bible (Old Testament)

The people which ceases to care for its literary inheritance becomes barbaric; the people which ceases to produce literature ceases to move in thought and sensibility.

-Eliot,T(homas) S(tearns)

inheritance quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"inheritance." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/inheritance>

APA Style

inheritance. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/inheritance

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