estate
ih-STAYT
Estate (noun) means a large area of land, usually with a big house, owned by one person or family. Example: “The estate has woods, a lake and a grand house at its centre.”
noun
1
A large area of land, usually with a big house, owned by one person or family.
"The estate has woods, a lake and a grand house at its centre."
"Visitors can walk around the gardens of the estate on Sundays."
"The family has owned the country estate for three generations."
2
Everything a person owns — money, property, and possessions — especially as dealt with after their death.
"She was named executor and had to sort out her uncle's estate."
"His entire estate was left to his children in the will."
"Lawyers spent months settling the estate."
3
British: a residential area built as a planned development, or a station wagon-style car (estate car).
"We live on a quiet estate near the shops, with a play area."
"He drove an old estate with plenty of room for the dog."
"They grew up on a housing estate on the edge of town."
How to use estate
Learner’s notes
UK vs US
In British English, an "estate" can mean a housing development or a station-wagon car; American English rarely uses it this way, preferring "housing development" and "station wagon."
Common pairings
real estate
settle an estate
a country estate
housing estate
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Word forms
- Third person singular
- estates
- Past tense
- estated
Fill the gap
Can you complete this real example?
The _____ has woods, a lake and a grand house at its centre.
Etymology
From Old French estat, from Latin status, "condition, standing." A doublet of "state" and "status."
Synonyms
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Rhymes for estate
See all rhymes for estate →Frequently asked questions
What does “estate” mean?
The word “estate” means a large area of land, usually with a big house, owned by one person or family.
How do you pronounce “estate”?
“Estate” is pronounced ih-STAYT (/ɪˈsteɪt/ in IPA).
How do you use “estate” in a sentence?
Here is “estate” used in a sentence: “The family has owned the country estate for three generations.”
What part of speech is “estate”?
“Estate” is a noun.
Where does the word “estate” come from?
The word “estate” comes from Latin. From Old French estat, from Latin status, "condition, standing." A doublet of "state" and "status.".
Is “estate” a common word?
“Estate” is a very common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B2 level.
How many meanings does “estate” have?
“Estate” has 3 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a large area of land, usually with a big house, owned by one person or family.
What is the difference between an estate and a property?
A property is any single owned building or piece of land, large or small — a flat, a house, a shop. An estate is grander: a large area of land, usually with a big main house and often other buildings, held by one owner or family. Every estate is property, but not every property is an estate.
What does 'estate' mean in a will?
This is a separate legal sense. A person's estate is everything they own at the time of death — money, property, possessions, and investments, minus any debts. It is gathered and shared out through a legal process called probate, following the will or, if there is none, the law.
What is a housing estate?
Chiefly in British English, a housing estate is a group of houses planned and built together as a single development. The word also appears in 'industrial estate' or 'trading estate', meaning an area set aside for businesses and factories. Here estate means a planned area of land put to one use.
What is real estate?
Real estate means land together with any buildings on it, treated as property that can be bought, sold, rented, or invested in. The term covers homes, offices, shops, and land itself. It is the everyday word, especially in American English, for the whole business of buying and selling property.
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