Definition of Decedent

A deceased person; one who has lately died. Etymologically the word denotes a person who is dying, but it has come to be used in law as signifying any defunct person, (testete or intestate,) but always with reference to the settlement of his estate or the execution of his will. In re JZeph's Estate, 50 Hun, 523, 3 N. Y. Supp. 460.