bailiwick
/ˈbeɪ.lɪ.wɪk/ noun
Forms bailiwicks
- noun The district within which a bailie or bailiff has jurisdiction. “The Bailiwick of Jersey.”
- noun (by extension) A person's concern or sphere of operations, their area of skill or authority.
Synonyms
jurisdiction domain department sphere province territory turf wheelhouse discipline subject subject area subject field field field of study study
Etymology
From bailie (“bailiff”) and wick (“dwelling”), from Old English wīc.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [Bailie, bailiff + wick a village.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “bailiwick”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details