heir

Pluralheirs

Formsheirs, heiring, heired

1. 1
   next in linenouncountable

   A person who inherits, or has been designated to inherit, another person's property, or a hereditary title or office such as a throne.

   Her nephew was named sole heir to the family estate.

   Lawyers spent months tracing the heirs of a woman who died without a will.

   Note

   Latin hērēs lies behind the word, which reached English through Anglo-Norman, where it was also spelled eir. The construction with to names what is inherited (heir to the house); a possessive names whose it was (my father's heir). The plural after a possessive is the lawyer's formula, as in Blackstone's Commentaries of 1765: "the founder and his heirs," meaning whoever inherits from him in turn. Source

   Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

   • English heir derives through Anglo-Norman heir/eir from Latin hērēs. en.wiktionary.org
   • The first volume of William Blackstone's Commentaries was first published in 1765. en.wikipedia.org
   • Blackstone uses the legal formula “the founder and his heirs” for the founder and those inheriting from him. gutenberg.org
2. 2
   successornouncountable

   A successor in a role who represents continuity with the person who held it before.

   Many critics see the young conductor as the true heir to the orchestra's founder.

   Party elders spent years grooming their chosen heirs to keep the old policies in place.

   Similarsuccessor

   Note

   Here nothing need pass by law: the heir is whoever is seen as carrying on another's work or standing, and it keeps company with true, fit and groomed. The Economist punned on hairs in 2013, describing India as run by gray hairs and groomed heirs. Even misery can be inherited this way: Elijah Fenton's 1725 translation of Book I of the Odyssey has "And I his heir in misery alone." Source

   Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 5 facts

   • The Economist used the hairs/heirs pun about India in 2013. en.wiktionary.org
   • The Economist described India as run by “grey hairs and groomed heirs.” en.wiktionary.org
   • Elijah Fenton translated Book I of the Odyssey in the translation published under Alexander Pope's name. en.wikipedia.org
   • The volume containing Book I of that translation first appeared in 1725. en.wikipedia.org
   • Book I contains the exact line “And I his heir in misery alone.” It occurs in Telemachus's speech. gutenberg.org
3. 3
   verbarchaictransitive or intransitive

   To inherit something, or, used without an object, to receive an inheritance.

   Similarinherit

   Note

   In the language of wills the verb can stand alone, with no object: "my children shall heir equally, one as much as the other" divides an estate into equal shares. Given an object, it names what is inherited, just as inherit would. The forms are regular: heirs, heiring, heired. Source

   Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

   • The quoted wording occurs in a will and directs equal inheritance by the children. archive.org

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