marquis
UK /ˈmɑː.kwɪs/ · US /mɑɹˈki/ noun, proper noun
Also a form of marquess
Forms marquises marquisses marquess marquesse
- noun 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 letters patent or letters close.
- noun Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the Asian genus Bassarona (or Euthalia).
- proper noun A surname from French.
- proper noun A town in Grenada, West Indies.
- proper noun A new neighbourhood in north-east Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
- proper noun A rural municipality in south-central Saskatchewan, Canada; in full, the Rural Municipality of Marquis No. 191.
- proper noun A village within the Saskatchewan municipality.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English markis, from Old French markis, marchis, from Late Latin marchensis, from Old High German marcha and Frankish *marku, from Proto-Germanic *markō, from Proto-Indo-European *mórǵs (“edge, boundary”).
Meaning is “lord of the march”, in sense of march (“border country”).
Borrowed from French marquis.
Webster’s 1913
- noun A nobleman in England, France, and Germany, of a rank next below that of duke. 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.
Etymology [F. marquis, OF. markis, marchis, LL. marchensis; of German origin; cf. G. mark bound, border, march, OHG. marcha. See March border, and cf. Marchioness, Marquee, Marquess.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “marquis”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details