Meaning & use
severalty
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Meaning
noununcountablelegal
Ownership of land or property by one person alone, not shared jointly with others.
Grammar: Used mainly in fixed legal phrases such as in severalty; not common in everyday speech.
Patterns
- in severalty
- hold land in severalty
- ownership in severalty
- tenancy in severalty
The heir held the farm in severalty after buying out his cousins.
A sole owner in severalty can sell without the consent of co-owners.
The deed described the property as held in severalty by one trustee.
Common combinations
- in severalty
- The clause states that the land is held in severalty.
- ownership in severalty
- Ownership in severalty gives one person full control of the asset.
- tenancy in severalty
- After partition, each heir received a tenancy in severalty.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sole ownership
- Sole ownership is the plain-language idea; severalty is the formal legal term.
- individual ownership
- Individual ownership is clearer to general readers but less technical than severalty.
Opposites
Word family
- severally adverb
- Legally, separately or individually; formal and uncommon outside contracts.
Commonly confused: severalty or several?
severalty vs several
Several means more than two but not many; severalty is a separate legal ownership term.
Practice
In land law, “severalty” most nearly means holding property ______.
Choose one answer.
The legal phrase is “in severalty,” meaning sole ownership. Joint ownership is the opposite idea, not a synonym.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “severalty”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.