usufruct

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   the legal right to use another person's property and receive its benefits or profits without destroying or substantially damaging it

   The deed gave her a lifetime usufruct in the orchard while ownership passed to her children.

2. 2
   verb

   to use and obtain benefits from property owned by another; rare

   The tenants may usufruct the communal land but may not sell or permanently alter it.

From Late Latin usufructus, a contraction of usus fructus, combining usus, 'use,' with fructus, 'enjoyment, produce, or fruit.' Roman law joined the right of use with the right to take the property's fruits while preserving its substance.

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