# demise

> English word · Noun · IPA /dɪˈmaɪz/ · frequency rank #11,866

## Definitions
1. The conveyance or transfer of an estate, either in fee for life or for years, most commonly the latter.
2. Transmission by formal act or conveyance to an heir or successor; transference; especially, the transfer or transmission of the crown or royal authority to a successor.
3. Death; decease.
4. The end of something, in a negative sense; downfall.
5. The atmospheric disintegration of a satellite or satellite component upon re-entering Earth's atmosphere.

## Etymology
From Middle English demyse, dimise, dimisse, dymyse, from Middle French démise, the feminine singular past participle of démettre (“to put down, relinquish”); from Latin dēmissa, feminine singular of perfect passive participle of dēmittō. The "death" and "end" senses derive by way of euphemism from the legal sense, as a person's death was a common way that the legal demise could be accomplished.
The verb is from Middle English dimisen, from the noun.

## Easily confused with
- **Dems** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-dems)
- **dense** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-dense)
- **Denis** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-denis)
- **demos** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-demos)
- **device** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-device)
- **desire** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-desire)
- **Denise** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-denise)
- **derive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-derive)
- **devise** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-devise)
- **desist** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-desist)
- **Devine** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-devine)
- **depose** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-depose)
- **demure** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-demure)
- **devised** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-devised)
- **despise** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-despise)
- **Dempsey** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/demise-vs-dempsey)
- **decide** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/decide-vs-demise)
- **define** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/define-vs-demise)
- **defuse** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/defuse-vs-demise)
- **defile** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/defile-vs-demise)

## Common misspellings (8)
`ddemise`, `deimse`, `demies`, `demisse`, `demmise`, `demsie`, `dmeise`, `edmise`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/demise