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Phrase(s): fall heir to something
1. Lit. to inherit something; to end up with certain possessions of someone who has died. • I fell heir to all my grandmother’s old photographs. 2. Fig. to end up with having to take care of something that no one else wants; to be placed in charge of something unexpectedly. • Bob fell heir to the Wilson project and has to complete what Jane failed to do.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs