°A solemn, authentic 
instrument in writing, by which a person declares his or her will as to disposal of his or her 
inheritance (
estate and effects) after his or her death, benefiting specified 
heir(s).
            
 
            
            
              °One of the two distinct revelations of the Judeo-Christian God's purposes toward man; a 
covenant; also, one of the two general divisions of the canonical books of the Biblical Scriptures, in which the covenants are respectively revealed: the Old Testament and the New Testament; -- often limited, in colloquial language, to the latter.
            
 
            
              
            
        
          synonyms:
          will, last will