What does appertaining mean?
"Appertaining" is the present participle of the verb "appertain," meaning to belong to something as a natural right, duty, privilege, or inherent attribute. When something appertains to a person, office, or property, it is properly and legitimately connected with it — for example, the rights appertaining to a title, or the duties appertaining to a particular post. The word derives from the Latin pertinere, meaning to reach or extend to something, entering English via Old French alongside its far more common sibling "pertain." Today, appertaining survives chiefly in formal contexts: legal documents, historical writing, and official language, where precision about what rightfully belongs to whom matters. It carries a dignified, slightly archaic connotation that lends weight to statements of entitlement or obligation. In everyday speech, writers almost always prefer "pertaining to," but appertaining remains valuable when one wishes to emphasize rightful ownership or attachment rather than mere relevance.
verbTo belong or relate to something as a natural right, duty, or attribute; to be properly connected with a particular person, office, or thing.
- To belong or be due to someone or something as a right, duty, privilege, or natural attribute.
- (Less commonly) To relate or refer to something generally.
"The privileges appertaining to the office of mayor include presiding over council meetings."
"All fees appertaining to the lease must be paid before occupancy."
"She studied the duties appertaining to her new rank in the regiment."
'Appertaining' is 'pertaining' with a legal pedigree — it's the word English uses when something belongs to you not just incidentally, but as a matter of right.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of appertaining
Appertaining comes from the verb "appertain," which entered English from Old French "apartenir," itself derived from the Latin "pertinere" — meaning to reach out to, belong to, or be attached to something. The Latin root also produced "pertain," "pertinent," and "impertinent." Appertain has been used in English since the medieval period and was especially common in legal and administrative language, where it described rights and dues belonging to land, titles, or offices.
Related word forms
How appertaining is actually used
Formal and somewhat old-fashioned in register; most at home in legal documents, historical texts, and official writing. In everyday modern English, 'pertaining to' is far more common. The word often appears in phrases like 'the rights appertaining to' an office, estate, or title.
Easily confused with appertaining
Pertaining is the more common form of essentially the same verb; 'appertaining' carries an added sense of belonging by right or proper association rather than mere relevance.