Freeholding

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Owning land or property absolutely and permanently, with full rights of ownership rather than a lease or limited tenure
2. Possessing real estate outright for life or in perpetuity, free from any superior landlord's claim or conditional terms
3. The state of holding an estate unconditionally, with complete title to land that passes to the owner's heirs

Etymology: "Freeholding" is a plain compound: "free" joined to "holding," the word for land or property held by tenure. The "free" part is the key. In medieval English law, a freehold was land held outright, without the obligation of servile labour or customary dues owed to a lord, as opposed to the villein or copyhold tenures that bound a tenant to a manor. "Holding," in this sense, meant a piece of land occupied under some tenure, so the compound names the state of holding land on those unencumbered terms. The noun now refers to the outright ownership itself rather than to any particular parcel. The two elements are both native English, which is why the word needs no Latin or French detour to explain it.

Synonyms: freehold

Antonyms: leasehold