dower : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: dower	by the DICT Development Group
2 results for dower
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
dower n money or property brought by a woman to her husband at marriage Synonym(s): dowry, dowery, dower, portion a life estate to which a wife is entitled on the death of her husband v furnish with an endowment; "When she got married, she got dowered" Synonym(s): endow, dower
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
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. How great, how plentiful, how rich a dower! --Sir J. Davies. Man in his primeval dower arrayed. --Wordsworth. 2. The property with which a woman is endowed; especially: (a) That which a woman brings to a husband in marriage; dowry. [Obs.] 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. 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. {Assignment of dower}. See under {Assignment}.