occupant

 
Pronunciation: /ˈɒkjʊp(ə)nt/

noun

  • a person who resides or is present in a house, vehicle, seat, etc., at a given time: the previous occupant of her room figurative occupants of the moral high ground
  • the holder of a position or office: the first occupant of the Chair of Botany
  • Law a person in actual possession of property, especially land.
  • Law a person who establishes a title by taking possession of something that previously did not have an established owner.

Origin:

late 16th century (in the legal sense 'person who establishes a title'): from French, or from Latin occupant- 'seizing', from the verb occupare