inherited

[ in-her-i-tid ]

adjective

1. received from or as if from one’s predecessors:

   Their wealth is from inherited properties, mostly through the estate of their mother’s parents.

   For the novelist Henry James, history, tradition, precedence, and established forms constituted the inherited wisdom of civilization.

2. received through genetic transmission:

   the family’s inherited trait of straight blond hair;

   kidney problems symptomatic of an inherited disorder.

3. Baseball. (of a base runner) allowed on base by a previous pitcher:

   The unlucky reliever balked, hit a batter, threw a wild pitch, allowed an inherited runner to score, and got only one out.

Other Words From

• half-in·her·it·ed adjective
• non·in·her·it·ed adjective
• qua·si-in·her·it·ed adjective
• un·in·her·it·ed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of inherited¹

First recorded in 1795–1800; inherit ( def ) + -ed ²( def )

Example Sentences

Currently, pedigrees are how horse owners and breeders find out which stallions are in a horse's ancestry, which gives information on the traits a horse may have inherited.

From Science Daily

His farming career began in the 1970s when he inherited a rubber plantation in the the southern Indian state of Kerala , which he managed alongside his career as a doctor.

From BBC

The government has said the move was necessary in order to address what it has called a financial "black hole" it inherited from the Conservatives.

From BBC

It was confirmed that this genetic trait is inherited to the next generation.

From Science Daily

The Home Office told the BBC it had inherited an asylum system under "unprecedented strain".

From BBC