from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Assignment \As*sign"ment\, n. [LL. assignamentum: cf. OF.
assenement.]
1. An allotting or an appointment to a particular person or
use; or for a particular time, as of a cause or causes in
court.
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2. (Law)
(a) A transfer of title or interest by writing, as of
lease, bond, note, or bill of exchange; a transfer of
the whole of some particular estate or interest in
lands.
(b) The writing by which an interest is transferred.
(c) The transfer of the property of a bankrupt to certain
persons called assignees, in whom it is vested for the
benefit of creditors.
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{Assignment of dower}, the setting out by metes and bounds of
the widow's thirds or portion in the deceased husband's
estate, and allotting it to her.
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Note: Assignment is also used in law as convertible with
specification; assignment of error in proceedings for
review being specification of error; and assignment of
perjury or fraud in indictment being specifications of
perjury or fraud.
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from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Dower \Dow"er\, n. [F. douaire, LL. dotarium, from L. dotare to
endow, portion, fr. dos dower; akin to Gr. ? gift, and to L.
dare to give. See 1st {Date}, and cf. {Dot} dowry,
{Dotation}.]
1. That with which one is gifted or endowed; endowment; gift.
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How great, how plentiful, how rich a dower! --Sir J.
Davies.
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Man in his primeval dower arrayed. --Wordsworth.
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2. The property with which a woman is endowed; especially:
(a) That which a woman brings to a husband in marriage;
dowry. [Obs.]
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His wife brought in dower Cilicia's crown.
--Dryden.
(b) (Law) That portion of the real estate of a man which
his widow enjoys during her life, or to which a woman
is entitled after the death of her husband.
--Blackstone.
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Note: Dower, in modern use, is and should be distinguished
from dowry. The former is a provision for a widow on
her husband's death; the latter is a bride's portion on
her marriage. --Abbott.
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{Assignment of dower}. See under {Assignment}.
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