A 401(k) is a retirement plan offered by an employer that allows you to take a percentage of your paycheck (you decide how much) and put it aside for your retirement. This money usually gets invested on your behalf in a variety of stocks and bonds so that your money can create more money.

Every type of financial vehicle has its own unique characteristics, including how it grows, how it's taxed and what it's used for. When setting up a retirement strategy, your financial advisor will begin by looking at two parts: how money goes in and how it comes back out.

If you inherit a 401(k) from your spouse, what you decide to do with it and the subsequent tax impacts may depend largely on your age and whether or not your spouse had started taking required minimum distributions (RMDs) before he or she died.