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Webster 1913 Edition

Bequest

Be-quest′

,
Noun.
[OE.
biquest
, corrupted fr.
bequide
; pref.
be-
+ AS.
cwide
a saying,
becweðan
to bequeath. The ending
-est
is probably due to confusion with
quest
. See
Bequeath
,
Quest
.]
1.
The act of bequeathing or leaving by will;
as, a
bequest
of property by A. to B
.
2.
That which is left by will, esp. personal property; a legacy; also, a gift.

Be-quest′

,
Verb.
T.
To bequeath, or leave as a legacy.
[Obs.]
“All I have to bequest.”
Gascoigne.

Webster 1828 Edition

Bequest

BEQUEST'

,
Noun.
Something left by will; a legacy.

Definition 2024

bequest

bequest

English

Noun

bequest ‎(plural bequests)

  1. The act of bequeathing or leaving by will.
  2. The transfer of property upon the owner's death according to the will of the deceased.
  3. That which is left by will; a legacy.
  4. That which has been handed down or transmitted.
  5. A person's inheritance; an amount of property given by will.

Translations

Synonyms

Verb

bequest ‎(third-person singular simple present bequests, present participle bequesting, simple past and past participle bequested)

  1. (transitive) To give as a bequest; bequeath.

Etymology

From Middle English bequeste ‎(“will, testament, bequest”), from be- + queste ‎(“saying, utterance”), from Old English *cwist, *cwiss, from Proto-Germanic *kwissiz ‎(“saying”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʷet- ‎(“to say”). Related to Old English andcwiss ‎(“answer, reply”), Old English uncwisse ‎(“dumb, mute”), Middle English bequethen ‎(“bequeath”). More at quoth, bequeath.

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