Beneficiary
The person or group you name to receive an account, a trust or an insurance payout when you die.
You name beneficiaries on a form from your employer, bank, brokerage or insurer. Retirement accounts, life insurance and payable on death bank accounts all use them, and the money goes straight to the people on the form, usually without probate.
The form generally controls even if your will says something else, so update it after a marriage, divorce, new child or death in the family.
Example
Alex's 401(k) names his partner as primary beneficiary at 100%, so the $48,000 goes to his partner without going through his will.