mort·main
(môrt′mān′)n. Law A legal arrangement in which a property owner such as an ecclesiastical institution is barred from transferring or selling its property.
[Middle English
mortemayne, from Old French
mortemain :
morte, feminine of
mort,
dead; see
mortgage +
main,
hand (from Latin
manus; see
man- in
Indo-European roots).]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
mortmain
(ˈmɔːtˌmeɪn) n (Law) law the state or condition of lands, buildings, etc, held inalienably, as by an ecclesiastical or other corporation
[C15: from Old French mortemain, from Medieval Latin mortua manus dead hand, inalienable ownership]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
mort•main
(ˈmɔrtˌmeɪn)
n. 1. the condition of lands or tenements held without right of alienation, as by an ecclesiastical corporation.
2. the perpetual holding of land, esp. by a corporation or charitable trust.
[1250–1300; Middle English < Anglo-French, translation of Medieval Latin mortua manus dead hand]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
mortmain
transfer or ownership of real property in perpetuity, as transfer to or ownership by a corporate body like a school, college, or church.
See also: Property and Ownership-Ologies & -Isms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.