rightful
adj.adj. describing something that belongs to a person because it is fair, legal, or honest.
adj. having a legitimate, legal, or moral claim to a position, property, or status. Often used to describe a return to a correct or original state.
The stolen painting was finally returned to its rightful owner.
After years of legal battles, the court decided she was the rightful heir to the family estate.
The restoration of the monarch was seen by many as a return to the rightful order of the state after a decade of political chaos.
From Middle English rightful, ryghtfull, riȝtful, from Old English *rihtfull (suggested by derivative unrihtfull (“unrightful”)), equivalent to right + -ful.
Typically used attributively before a noun like 'owner', 'place', or 'heir'.
He is the rightly ownerHe is the rightful ownerLearners often confuse the adverb 'rightly' with the adjective 'rightful' when modifying a noun.