The story
- Anglo-Norman · borrowed fromcy pres“as close”
- English todaycy pres
From Anglo-Norman cy pres (“as close”) (i.e. as close as possible), equivalent to Modern French si près or aussi près.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
cy pres
Today it means: In the law governing charitable trusts, the doctrine that a court may direct the funds of the trust to a best alternative, to be chosen when the original beneficiary or direction is no longer possible or practicable, e.g. because it has ceased to exist or was ambiguously named. Full definition →
Anglo-Norman cy pres