PROBATE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does probate mean? 

• PROBATE (noun)
  The noun PROBATE has 2 senses:

1. a judicial certificate saying that a will is genuine and conferring on the executors the power to administer the estate

2. the act of proving that an instrument purporting to be a will was signed and executed in accord with legal requirements

  Familiarity information: PROBATE used as a noun is rare.

• PROBATE (verb)
  The verb PROBATE has 2 senses:

1. put a convicted person on probation by suspending his sentence

2. establish the legal validity of (wills and other documents)

  Familiarity information: PROBATE used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PROBATE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A judicial certificate saying that a will is genuine and conferring on the executors the power to administer the estate

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

probate; probate will

Hypernyms ("probate" is a kind of...):

certificate; certification; credential; credentials (a document attesting to the truth of certain stated facts)

Domain category:

jurisprudence; law (the collection of rules imposed by authority)

Derivation:

probate (establish the legal validity of (wills and other documents))

Sense 2

Meaning:

The act of proving that an instrument purporting to be a will was signed and executed in accord with legal requirements

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("probate" is a kind of...):

proof; substantiation; validation (the act of validating; finding or testing the truth of something)

Derivation:

probate (establish the legal validity of (wills and other documents))

• PROBATE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they probate    ... he / she / it probates   
Past simple: probated   
Past participle: probated   
-ing form: probating   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Put a convicted person on probation by suspending his sentence

Classified under:

Verbs of being, having, spatial relations

Hypernyms (to "probate" is one way to...):

defer; hold over; postpone; prorogue; put off; put over; remit; set back; shelve; table (hold back to a later time)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

probation ((law) a way of dealing with offenders without imprisoning them; a defendant found guilty of a crime is released by the court without imprisonment subject to conditions imposed by the court)

probation (a trial period during which an offender has time to redeem himself or herself)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Establish the legal validity of (wills and other documents)

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "probate" is one way to...):

formalise; formalize; validate (declare or make legally valid)

Domain category:

jurisprudence; law (the collection of rules imposed by authority)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

probate (the act of proving that an instrument purporting to be a will was signed and executed in accord with legal requirements)

probate (a judicial certificate saying that a will is genuine and conferring on the executors the power to administer the estate)

probative (tending to prove a particular proposition or to persuade you of the truth of an allegation)

 Context examples 

Marriage licences and small probates were what we all looked for, and what paid us best; and the competition for these ran very high indeed.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

You could have received an inheritance and are deciding how best to invest the money, or if you need to go through probate, you may be awaiting the decision of the court about the will’s validity.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)