an heir whose right is indefeasible, provided he or she survives the ancestor.
2.
a person whose succession to a position appears certain:
His popularity makes him the chief's heir apparent.
Origin
1325-75;Middle English
Related forms
heir apparency, noun
Examples from the web for heir apparent
Perhaps the committee decided to cast a wider net, or maybe the heir apparent withdrew, and the university was in panic mode.
But this unprecedented showdown with his frustrated heir apparent has shaken his control.
British Dictionary definitions for heir apparent
heir apparent
noun (pl) heirs apparent
1.
(property law) a person whose right to succeed to certain property cannot be defeated, provided such person survives his ancestor Compare heir presumptive