Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Synonyms
Nearby Entries
Definition of posterity - 5 dictionary results
Legal Ordination Online
 Become an Ordained Minister, Pastor Minister License, Wedding Officiant
 www.wcm.org

pos⋅ter⋅i⋅ty

  [po-ster-i-tee]
Use posterity in a Sentence
–noun
1. succeeding or future generations collectively: Judgment of this age must be left to posterity.
2. all descendants of one person: His fortune was gradually dissipated by his posterity.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME posterite < L posteritās, n. deriv. of posterus coming after. See posterior, -ity
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To posterity
pos·ter·i·ty   (pŏ-stěr'ĭ-tē)   
n.  
  1. Future generations: "Everything he writes is consigned to posterity" (Joyce Carol Oates).
  2. All of a person's descendants.

[Middle English posterite, from Old French, from Latin posteritās, from posterus, coming after; see posterior.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Posterity

Pos*ter"i*ty\, n. [L. posteritas: cf. F. post['e]rit['e]. See Posterior.]

1. The race that proceeds from a progenitor; offspring to the furthest generation; the aggregate number of persons who are descended from an ancestor of a generation; descendants; -- contrasted with ancestry; as, the posterity of Abraham.

If [the crown] should not stand in thy posterity. --Shak.

2. Succeeding generations; future times. --Shak.

Their names shall be transmitted to posterity. --Shak.

Their names shall be transmitted to posterity. --Smalridge.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source
Language Translation for : posterity
Spanish: posteridad,
German: die Nachwelt,
Japanese: 子孫
More Translations »

posterity 
1387, from O.Fr. posterité, from L. posteritatem (nom. posteritas) "the condition of coming after," from posterus "coming after, subsequent," from post "after."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source

Main Entry: pos·ter·i·ty
Pronunciation: pä-'ster-&-tE
Function: noun
1 : all of the lineal descendants of a person
2 : all future generations
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see posterity on Thesaurus | Reference
Legal Ordination Online
 Become an Ordained Minister, Pastor Minister License, Wedding Officiant
 www.wcm.org