earl
noun
a British nobleman of a rank below that of marquis and above that of viscount: called count for a time after the Norman conquest. The wife of an earl is a countess.
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earl
1 American
[url]
/ ɜrl /
noun
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earls
plural
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a British nobleman of a rank below that of marquis and above that of viscount: called count for a time after the Norman conquest. The wife of an earl is a countess.
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(in Anglo-Saxon England) a governor of one of the great divisions of England, including East Anglia, Mercia, Northumbria, and Wessex.
Earl
2
American
[url]
/ ɜrl /
Or
Earle
noun
earl
British
/ ɜːl /
noun
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Female equivalent: countess. (in the British Isles) a nobleman ranking below a marquess and above a viscount
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(in Anglo-Saxon England) a royal governor of any of the large divisions of the kingdom, such as Wessex
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of earl
before 900; Middle English erl, Old English eorl; cognate with Old Saxon erl man, Old Norse jarl chieftain
Explanation
An earl is a member of the British nobility. An earl is ranked above a viscount or a baron, in case you know those titles. Earl certainly carries more clout than "Mister"! One of the ceremonial titles given to noblemen in the United Kingdom is earl. Being an earl used to come with a great deal of power and control over a certain region, including the authority to pass judgment in courts of law. While it's still prestigious to be an earl, there's less actual power involved in the position. The word itself comes from the Old English word eorl, "brave man, warrior, leader, or chief."
Vocabulary lists containing earl
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Similarly, the earl of Peterborough's son refused both to remove his hat and to enter a plea when tried for treason in 1658.
From Science Daily ● May 7, 2026
Viewers eventually learn Sophie’s servitude is forced after her parentage is revealed — she’s the illegitimate daughter of an earl.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 29, 2026
But the longed-for comeuppance of the brutish earl is as much an attraction to the series as Ms. Peckham.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2025
Some people suggested it belonged to a local earl.
From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2023
“You could not hold such a position as I heard you express yesterday, my friend,” the earl said.
From "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine
Earl Warren, to start, was governor of California, and that kind of political experience wasn’t uncommon.
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026
Kennedy’s father was a friend of Gov. Earl Warren, and young Tony played with Warren’s children.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
It’s been revived twice on Broadway, most recently with Cicely Tyson and James Earl Jones a little over a decade ago, and widely produced in regional theaters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
Ben Earl has called for a change to the Nations Championship format after England's "brutal" schedule in the summer leg of the inaugural competition.
From BBC ● Jul. 20, 2026
We dip our spoons into the freezer bag full of Earl Grey ice cream with halwa pieces.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Its inhabitants are those of “there will always be an England” England: stern vicars, timid curates, lords and earls, penniless titled wastrels living on allowances from their uncles, imperious aunts, upper-crust twits.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2025
The Declaration was written in Latin and was sealed by eight earls and about 40 barons.
From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2023
A duke is the highest ranking member of the English nobility, followed by marquesses, earls, viscounts and barons.
From New York Times ● Mar. 10, 2023
“The United States Constitution's ban on inherited titles met with unanimous approval because of the perceived threat posed by lords and earls to a democratic republic.”
From Salon ● Oct. 7, 2018
If this ex- panded idea of freedom spread, how safe were the kings and dukes, earls and knights, of England?
From "Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science" by Marc Aronson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
