Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

heriot

/ˈhɛɹɪət/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.40 in modern English

Syllables
heri-ot
IPA
/ˈhɛɹɪət/
9
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The return of military equipment.

noun

A payment made to a lord on the death of a tenant.

noun

A tribute.

Dated

verb

To pay the heriot on (a piece of real estate) after the death of the previous tenant (such as one's parent, uncle, aunt, or grandparent).

Transitive verb

name

A surname.

Countable; Uncountable

name

A scattered settlement in Scottish Borders council area, Scotland, historically part of Midlothian (OS grid ref NT3952 to NT4054).

Countable; Uncountable

name

A settlement in West Otago, New Zealand.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

Etymology

From Old English hereġeatwa (“military equipment, army gear”). Per Etymonline: "An Anglo-Saxon service of weapons, loaned by the lord to his retainer and repayable to him upon the retainer's death; sense transferred by 13c. to a feudal due upon the death of a tenant, payable to his lord in beasts."

Origin

Word Breakdown

Usage

Inflected Forms

Derived Forms

Synonyms

Questions

How do you pronounce heriot?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈhɛɹɪət/.
What does heriot mean?
The return of military equipment.
Where does heriot come from?
It is traced to Old English.

How to pronounce heriot

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “heriot”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈhɛɹɪət/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “heriot”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “heriot” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.