Dictionary-Definition.com :: VEST definition

Definition of 'vest'

noun

A man's sleeveless garment worn underneath a coat [syn: vest, waistcoat]

noun

A collarless men's undergarment for the upper part of the body [syn: singlet, vest, undershirt]

verb

Provide with power and authority; "They vested the council with special rights" [syn: invest, vest, enthrone] [ant: disinvest, divest]

verb

Place (authority, property, or rights) in the control of a person or group of persons; "She vested her vast fortune in her two sons"

verb

Become legally vested; "The property vests in the trustees"

verb

Clothe oneself in ecclesiastical garments

verb

Clothe formally; especially in ecclesiastical robes [syn: vest, robe]

From: GCIDE

Vest \Vest\ (v[e^]st), v. i. To come or descend; to be fixed; to take effect, as a title or right; -- followed by in; as, upon the death of the ancestor, the estate, or the right to the estate, vests in the heir at law. [1913 Webster]

From: GCIDE

Vest \Vest\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Vested; p. pr. & vb. n. Vesting.] [Cf. L. vestire, vestitum, OF. vestir, F. v[^e]tir. See Vest, n.]
1. To clothe with, or as with, a vestment, or garment; to dress; to robe; to cover, surround, or encompass closely. [1913 Webster]
Came vested all in white, pure as her mind. --Milton. [1913 Webster]
With ether vested, and a purple sky. --Dryden. [1913 Webster]
2. To clothe with authority, power, or the like; to put in possession; to invest; to furnish; to endow; -- followed by with before the thing conferred; as, to vest a court with power to try cases of life and death. [1913 Webster]
Had I been vested with the monarch's power. --Prior. [1913 Webster]
3. To place or give into the possession or discretion of some person or authority; to commit to another; -- with in before the possessor; as, the power of life and death is vested in the king, or in the courts. [1913 Webster]
Empire and dominion was [were] vested in him. --Locke. [1913 Webster]
4. To invest; to put; as, to vest money in goods, land, or houses. [R.] [1913 Webster]
5. (Law) To clothe with possession; as, to vest a person with an estate; also, to give a person an immediate fixed right of present or future enjoyment of; as, an estate is vested in possession. --Bouvier. [1913 Webster]

From: GCIDE

Vest \Vest\ (v[e^]st), n. [L. vestis a garment, vesture; akin to Goth. wasti, and E. wear: cf. F. veste. See Wear to carry on the person, and cf. Divest, Invest, Travesty.] [1913 Webster]
1. An article of clothing covering the person; an outer garment; a vestment; a dress; a vesture; a robe. [1913 Webster]
In state attended by her maiden train, Who bore the vests that holy rites require. --Dryden. [1913 Webster]
2. Any outer covering; array; garb. [1913 Webster]
Not seldom clothed in radiant vest Deceitfully goes forth the morn. --Wordsworth. [1913 Webster]
3. Specifically, a waistcoat, or sleeveless body garment, for men, worn under the coat. [1913 Webster]
Syn: Garment; vesture; dress; robe; vestment; waistcoat.
Usage: Vest, Waistcoat. In England, the original word waistcoat is generally used for the body garment worn over the shirt and immediately under the coat. In the United States this garment is commonly called a vest, and the waistcoat is often improperly given to an under-garment. [1913 Webster]