bequest
/bɪˈkwɛst/noun, verb
bequest is spelled B-E-Q-U-E-S-T: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 35,320th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bequest means “The act of bequeathing or leaving by will” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bequest is bequests.
How many letters and syllables are in bequest?
| Letters | 7: B-E-Q-U-E-S-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 35,320th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is bequest?
Bequest appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 35,320th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce bequest?
- /bɪˈkwɛst/
Bequest has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-bequest.wav, En-us-bequest.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of bequest
- bequests plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- bequesting participle, present
- bequested participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bequest mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 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.
verb
- 1
To give as a bequest; bequeath.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bequest in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | testament , héritage, legs |
| German | Testament , Erbschaft , vererben, vermachen |
| Portuguese | testamento |
| Spanish | testamento , herencia, heredad |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does bequest come from?
From Middle English biqueste, bequeste (“will, testament, bequest”), from be- + quiste, queste (“saying, utterance, testament, will, legacy”), from Old English *cwist, *cwiss (“saying”) (compare Old English andcwiss, ġecwis, uncwisse, etc.), 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 (“to bequeath”). Not related to quest, which is from Latin. More at quoth, bequeath.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).