Marquis definition

märkwis; Fr mȧpkē
marquises
See word origin
Frequency:
In some countries of Europe, a nobleman ranking above an earl or count and below a duke.
noun
5
0
The definition of a marquis is a European nobleman below a duke and above an earl or count.

An example of a marquis was the Marquis de Sade, a French aristocrat and writer who was famous for his erotic novels.

noun
0
0
A nobleman ranking below a duke and above an earl or a count.
noun
0
0
Used as a title for such a nobleman.
noun
0
0
(person) 1878-1937; U.S. humorist & journalist.
proper name
0
0
Advertisement
A nobleman in England, France, and Germany, of a rank next below that of duke, but above a count. Originally, the marquis was an officer whose duty was to guard the marches or frontiers of the kingdom. The office has ceased, and the name is now a mere title conferred by patent.
noun
0
0

Other Word Forms

Noun

Singular:
marquis
Plural:
marquises

Origin of marquis

  • Partly from French marquis and partly from Middle English marques both from Old French marquis, marchis from marche border country of Germanic origin merg- in Indo-European roots

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • French: marquis; Old French: markis, marchis; Late Latin: marchensis; Old High German: marcha. Frankish *marka, from Proto-Germanic *markō, from Proto-Indo-European *mereg- (“edge, boundary").

    From Wiktionary

  • Meaning is “lord of the march", in sense of march (“border country").

    From Wiktionary

Marquis Sentence Examples

  • In 1672, having finished his philosophy course, he was given a scholarship at the college of St Michel at Paris by Jean, marquis de Pompadour, lieutenant-general of the Limousin.

  • In 1901 and again in 1905 the marquis de Segonzac, a Frenchman, made extensive journeys in the Moroccan ranges.

  • Napoleon induced the king of Spain to allow French troops to occupy the country and to send the flower of the Spanish forces (15,000) under the marquis of Romana 1 to assist the French on the Baltic. Then Dupont de l'Etang (25,000) was ordered to cross the Bidassoa on the 22nd of November 1807; and by the 8th of January 1808 he had reached Burgos and Valladolid.

  • Grand seigneurs, like the prince of Conde, the duc de Nevers and the marquis de Vardes, were glad to vary the monotony of their feudal castles by listening to the eloquent rehearsals of Malebranche or Regis.

  • In France there once lived a famous man who was known as the Marquis de Lafayette. When he was a little boy his mother called him Gilbert.

More sentences

Related articles

Also Mentioned In

Words near marquis in the Dictionary