fee

1 of 2

noun

1
a(1)
: an estate in land held in feudal law from a lord on condition of homage and service
(2)
: a piece of land so held
b
: an inherited or heritable estate in land
2
a
: a fixed charge
b
: a sum paid or charged for a service

fee

2 of 2

verb

feed; feeing

transitive verb

1
chiefly Scotland : hire
2
Phrases
in fee
: in absolute and legal possession

Examples of fee in a Sentence

Noun The admission fee is $10. a credit card with no annual fee The tuition fees went up this year. We returned the library book late and had to pay a late fee. His insurance covers the doctor's fee. They paid a fortune in legal fees. Verb the townspeople fee country lasses as housemaids, nurses, and cooks
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The sellers who brought the lawsuit against the NAR and the brokerages said that buyers should be able to negotiate the fee with their agent, and that the sellers should not be on the hook for paying it. Anna Bahney, CNN, 15 Mar. 2024 But the timeline and magnitude of cuts is uncertain, and refinancing fees can sometimes outweigh the benefit. Claire Ballentine, Fortune, 15 Mar. 2024 Democrats in the Maryland House of Delegates launched a $1.2 billion tax, toll and fee increase package Friday certain tohold the state’s budget hostage, escalating intraparty tensions over how to patch huge, mounting deficit projections not seen since the Great Recession. Erin Cox, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024 Others do personal consults for a fee that promise in-depth research and recommendations based on their client’s preferences and aesthetic. Alice Wolfe, Allure, 15 Mar. 2024 The entry fees are usually shared between the winners or top teams. Jennifer Edwards Baker, The Enquirer, 13 Mar. 2024 The move adds some celebrity power to the broadcast at a time when more TV networks are trying to broaden the appeal of their sports portfolios and lure new crowds to games and contests of all sorts — and amortize the costly rights fees required to show them in the process. Brian Steinberg, Variety, 13 Mar. 2024 The fee would be assessed in coordination with the Franchise Tax Board and added as a surcharge to their tax bill, according to draft legislation. Tammy Murga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Mar. 2024 Hair Color Studio, the proper tip for a hairstylist is 20% of the service fee. Maddy Zollo Rusbosin, Southern Living, 12 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'fee.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French fé, fief, of Germanic origin; akin to Old English feoh cattle, property, Old High German fihu cattle; akin to Latin pecus cattle, pecunia money

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of fee was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near fee

Cite this Entry

“Fee.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fee. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

fee

noun
ˈfē
1
: a set charge
admission fee
license fee
2
: a charge for a professional service
a doctor's fees

Legal Definition

fee

noun
1
: an inheritable freehold estate in real property
especially : fee simple compare leasehold, life estate at estate
absolute fee
: a fee granted with no restrictions or limitations on alienability : fee simple absolute at fee simple
conditional fee
: a fee that is subject to a condition: as
a : fee simple conditional at fee simple
defeasible fee
: a fee that is subject to terminating or being terminated
determinable fee
: a defeasible fee that terminates automatically upon the occurrence of a specified event : fee simple determinable at fee simple
fee patent
: a fee simple absolute that is granted by a patent from the U.S. government
also : a patent that grants a fee simple absolute
the land shall have the same status as though such fee patent had never been issued U.S. Code

Note: Allotments of parcels of land in reservations are held in private ownership by fee patents.

fee tail
: a fee which is granted to an individual and to that individual's descendants, which is subject to a reversion or a remainder if a tenant in tail dies with no lineal descendants, and which is not freely alienable see also entail entry 1, De Donis Conditionalibus compare fee simple conditional at fee simple

Note: The fee tail developed out of the fee simple conditional as a means to ensure that property would remain intact and in the family. Instead of giving the grantee a fee simple absolute once he or she has a child, which the grantee could then alienate (as by selling), the fee tail creates a future interest in the descendants which prevents the grantee and the descendants from alienating the property. A fee tail is created by a conveyance to the grantee and to the heirs of the grantee's body. In most jurisdictions, the fee tail is not recognized.

2
: a fixed amount or percentage charged
especially : a sum paid or charged for a service
attorney fees
contingency fee
: a fee for the services of a lawyer paid upon successful completion of the services and usually calculated as a percentage of the gain obtained for the client

called also contingency, contingent fee

compare champerty, maintenance
filing fee
: a fee charged for the filing of a document

Note: Filing fees are ordinarily charged in civil matters with the filing of the complaint.

jury fee
: a fee that is assessed in some courts as part of the cost of a civil jury trial
origination fee
: a fee charged by a lender for the preparation and processing of a loan
Etymology

Noun

Middle English, fief, from Old French , fief, ultimately from a Germanic word akin to Old High German fehu cattle

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