chattel personal

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

chat•tel /ˈtʃætəl/   n. [countable]

1. Law an article of personal property that can be moved.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

chat•tel  (chat′l), n. 

1. Law a movable article of personal property.
2. any article of tangible property other than land, buildings, and other things annexed to land.
3. a slave.

• Old French. See cattle
• Middle English chatel 1175–1225

Synonyms

• 1. See property. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

chattel / ˈtʃæt^əl/ noun

1. (often plural)chattel personal ⇒ an item of movable personal property, such as furniture, domestic animals, etc
2. chattel real ⇒ an interest in land less than a freehold, such as a lease
3. goods and chattels ⇒ personal property

Etymology: 13th Century: from Old French chatel personal property, from Medieval Latin capitāle wealth; see capital¹