Adeem means to revoke or withdraw a bequest because the bequeathed assets no longer belong to the testator at the time of their death. This occurs when the property that was the subject of a specific bequest is sold, destroyed, given away, or no longer exists at the time of the testator's death. See: ademption, ademption by extinction.
To avoid confusion about what may or may not be adeemed, the phrase "if owned by me at my death" is sometimes included in the terms of a bequest of property in a will.
[Last updated in December of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team]