beneficiary

Sayben-uh-FISH-uh-reeUS/ˌbɛn.ɪˈfɪʃ.ɚ.i/UK/ˌbɛn.ɪˈfɪʃ.əɹ.i/

Pluralbeneficiaries

5 meanings of beneficiary

1
nouncountable
A person who gets something good from a situation, plan, or event.
He was the biggest beneficiary of the new rule, since it cut his work in half.
The students were the main beneficiaries of the money raised for the school.
Similarrecipient
2
nouncountable
A person who receives money or property from someone's will or trust.
Her grandmother named her as a beneficiary in the will.
The three beneficiaries each received a share of the money after the lawyer finished the paperwork.
Similarheir, inheritor, legatee
Note
3
nouncountable
The person who gets the money when an insurance policy pays out.
He listed his wife as the beneficiary on his life insurance.
When the claim was approved, the company sent the money straight to the beneficiary.
Similarrecipient, payee
Note
4
adjective
Held or used with the permission of a more powerful person, not fully owned.
Like borrowing a room in someone's house: you can use it, but it is never really yours.
The knight kept his beneficiary lands only as long as he served the king.
His beneficiary office could be taken away at any time by the lord above him.
Note
5
adjective
Given as a free gift or extra reward, not as something owed.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of beneficiary apart? Answer 4 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From Latin beneficiarius, meaning someone who enjoys a favor, from beneficium, meaning benefit. It may have come through French bénéficiaire.