Primogeniture - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

pri·mo·gen·i·ture

Audio Help [prahy-muh-jen-i-cher, -choo

r] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	the state or fact of being the firstborn of children of the same parents.

2.	Law. the system of inheritance or succession by the firstborn, specifically the eldest son.

Compare postremogeniture.

[Origin: 1585–95; < ML prīmōgenitūra a first birth, equiv. to L prīmō at first + genitūra, equiv. to genit(us) (ptp. of gignere to beget; see kin) + -ūra -ure

]

—Related forms

pri·mo·gen·i·tar·y, pri·mo·gen·i·tal, adjective

pri·mo·gen·i·ture·ship, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Primogeniture

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

pri·mo·gen·i·ture Audio Help (prī'mō-jěn'ĭ-chŏŏr') Pronunciation Key
n.

The state of being the first born or eldest child of the same parents.
Law The right of the eldest child, especially the eldest son, to inherit the entire estate of one or both parents.

[Late Latin prīmōgenitūra : Latin prīmō, at first (from prīmus, first; see per¹ in Indo-European roots) + Latin genitūra, birth (from genitus, past participle of gignere, to beget; see genə- in Indo-European roots).]

pri'mo·gen'i·tar'y (-jěn'ĭ-těr'ē), pri'mo·gen'i·tal (-təl) adj.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
primogeniture

1602, "right of succession of the first-born," from M.L. primogenitura, from L.L. primogenitus "first-born," from L. primus "first" (see prime (adj.)) + genitus, pp. of gignere "to beget" (see genus).

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

primogeniture
noun
right of inheritance belongs exclusively to the eldest son

American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
primogeniture [(preye-moh-jen-uh-choor, preye-moh-jen-uh-chuhr)]

A system of inheritance in which land passes exclusively to the eldest son. Until the Industrial Revolution, this system severely restricted the freedom of younger sons, who were often forced into the military or the clergy to earn a living.

[Chapter:] Anthropology, Psychology, and Sociology

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Primogeniture

Pri`mi*ge"ni*ous\, Primigenous \Pri*mig"e*nous\, a. [L. primigenus, primigenius. See Primogeniture.] First formed or generated; original; primigenial. --Bp. Hall.

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