heiress
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heiress
A female person who legally receives another person's wealth, property, or title after that person's death.
Als alleinige Erbin übernahm sie das Unternehmen ihres Vaters.
As the sole heiress, she took over her father's company.
'Erbin' (heiress) belongs to the word family of 'erben' (to inherit) and 'das Erbe' (the inheritance / heritage). The ending '-in' indicates that it refers to a female person.
Nach dem Tod ihres Onkels wurde sie zur Erbin eines kleinen Vermögens.
After her uncle's death, she became the heiress to a small fortune.
Most often, 'Erbin' (heiress) is followed by a genitive that indicates what is being inherited. The person from whom something is inherited can also be in the genitive.
Sie ist die alleinige Erbin des riesigen Anwesens.
She is the sole heiress to the huge estate.
The figurative meaning is almost always signaled by an adjective such as 'geistig' (intellectual/spiritual) or 'kulturell' (cultural). If such an adjective is missing, the legal meaning is usually intended.
Die junge Musikerin wird als die geistige Erbin von Clara Schumann gefeiert.
The young musician is celebrated as the intellectual heiress of Clara Schumann.
heir
'der Erbe' and 'die Erbin' mean almost the same thing, but they differ in the gender of the person. 'der Erbe' is the masculine form, or in some texts it can be meant generally. 'die Erbin' is the feminine form. Both can refer to a person who receives wealth or property after someone dies. Both can also be used figuratively when someone carries on ideas or a tradition. They can be confused because the meaning is the same; what you mainly need to pay attention to is the natural grammatical gender of the person.
Nach dem Tod ihrer Tante wurde Maria Erbin eines alten Hauses.
After her aunt's death, Maria became the heiress to an old house.
Der Sohn wurde im Testament als einziger Erbe genannt.
The son was named in the will as the sole heir.