duchy

[ duhch-ee ]

noun,plural duch·ies.
  1. the territory ruled by a duke or duchess.

Origin of duchy

1
1350–1400; Middle English duche<Middle French duche;Anglo-French, Old French duchié<Medieval Latin ducātus;Late Latin, Latin: the rank or functions of a dux; see duke, -ate3

Words Nearby duchy

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How to use duchy in a sentence

  • Well, the Prince last year received an annual income from the duchy of £19m, on which he paid £4.4m in income tax and VAT.

  • He will also lose the massive income from the lands held by the duchy of Cornwall, which currently provide some of their funding.

  • As Foreign Minister, by simply taking what he wanted, he added considerably to the extent of his duchy.

    Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-Pattison
  • On her death the duchy of Brabant passed, by a family arrangement, to the House of Burgundy.

    Belgium | George W. T. (George William Thomson) Omond
  • You are right as to yourself, Albert; for they have given you the ancient title and duchy of de Retz.

    Catherine de' Medici | Honore de Balzac
  • Saxony had recovered her independence, the peoples of Dantzic and the duchy of Warsaw their country and their rights.

    The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte | William Milligan Sloane
  • In order to populate the new port, he proclaimed there a religious liberty he denied to his duchy at large.

British Dictionary definitions for duchy

duchy

/ (ˈdʌtʃɪ) /


nounplural duchies
  1. the territory of a duke or duchess; dukedom

Origin of duchy

1
C14: from Old French duche, from duc duke

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012