vested
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have a vested interest (in something)
To have a personal stake in something, typically because one could potentially benefit from it. Of course I have a vested interest in how the board reacts to this proposal—if they like it, they might promote me!
vest (one) with (something)
To grant or endow something, such as power, rights, control, etc., to some specific person or group. Don't you think you've vested the supervisors of each department with a bit too much autonomy? The state has vested me with the power to unite two people in matrimony, a privilege that I do not take lightly. I'm vesting my granddaughter, Sophia, control over my entire fortune.
See also: vest
vest (something) in (someone or something)
To grant, place, or endow something, such as power, rights, control, etc., under the authority of some specific person or group. Often used in passive constructions. Don't you think you've vested a bit too much autonomy in your supervisors? By the powers vested in me by the state of Wyoming, I grant you husband and wife! I'm vesting control over my fortune in my granddaughter, Sophia.
See also: vest
vested interest
A strong, self-motivated interest or stake (in someone or something). The industry accounts for nearly 30% of our annual revenue, so of course we have a vested interest in any legislation that could affect it. He's got a $200 bet riding on this team, so yes, you could say he's got a vested interest in whether they win or lose.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
*vested interest (in something)
Fig. a personal or biased interest, often financial, in something. (*Typically: have ~; give someone ~.) Margaret has a vested interest in wanting her father to sell the family firm. She has shares in it and would make a large profit. Bob has a vested interest in keeping the village traffic-free. He has a summer home there.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
vested interest
A personal stake in something, as in She has a vested interest in keeping the house in her name. This term, first recorded in 1818, uses vested in the sense of "established" or "secured."
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
have a vested ˈinterest (in something)
have a personal reason for wanting something to happen, especially because you get some advantage from it: He has a vested interest in Mona leaving the firm (= perhaps because he may get her job).Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
vested interest
A personal stake in an existing arrangement or institution; also, in the plural (vested interests), those who have such a stake. In his oft-quoted essay On Liberty (1859), John Stuart Mill wrote, “The doctrine ascribes to all mankind a vested interest in each other’s moral, intellectual, and even physical perfection.”
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer