escheat

Fetched 2026-10-26 (cache).

Synonyms: excheat, scheat

Antonyms: excheat, scheat

Related words from Datamuse; suggestions, not definitions.

Noun

1. {{lb|en|legal}} The [[return]], [[conversion]], or [[vest|vesting]] of [[property]] of a [[deceased]] person or closed [[business]] to the [[government]] (originally to a [[feudal]] [[lord]]) where there are no [[legal]] [[heir]]s or [[claimant]]s. It is known as [[bona vacantia]] in the United Kingdom.
2. {{lb|en|legal}} The property so [[revert]]ed.
3. {{lb|en|obsolete}} [[plunder|Plunder]], [[booty]].
4. That which falls to one; a reversion or return.

Verb

1. {{lb|en|transitive}} To put (land, property) in escheat; to [[confiscate]].
2. {{lb|en|intransitive}} To revert, convert, or vest ownership to the [[government]] or [[lord]] because its previous owner died without an heir or a business closed and no one claims the assets.

Source: Wiktionary · CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wiktionary dump) · cached copy, not a rewrite.