from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Vest \Vest\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Vested}; p. pr. & vb. n.
{Vesting}.] [Cf. L. vestire, vestitum, OF. vestir, F.
v[^e]tir. See {Vest}, n.]
1. To clothe with, or as with, a vestment, or garment; to
dress; to robe; to cover, surround, or encompass closely.
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Came vested all in white, pure as her mind.
--Milton.
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With ether vested, and a purple sky. --Dryden.
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2. To clothe with authority, power, or the like; to put in
possession; to invest; to furnish; to endow; -- followed
by with before the thing conferred; as, to vest a court
with power to try cases of life and death.
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Had I been vested with the monarch's power. --Prior.
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3. To place or give into the possession or discretion of some
person or authority; to commit to another; -- with in
before the possessor; as, the power of life and death is
vested in the king, or in the courts.
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Empire and dominion was [were] vested in him.
--Locke.
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4. To invest; to put; as, to vest money in goods, land, or
houses. [R.]
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5. (Law) To clothe with possession; as, to vest a person with
an estate; also, to give a person an immediate fixed right
of present or future enjoyment of; as, an estate is vested
in possession. --Bouvier.
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