peerage
Americannoun
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the body of peers of a country or state.
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the rank or dignity of a peer.
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a book listing the peers and giving their genealogies.
noun
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the whole body of peers; aristocracy
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the position, rank, or title of a peer
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(esp in the British Isles) a book listing the peers and giving genealogical and other information about them
Etymology
Origin of peerage
First recorded in 1425–75, peerage is from the late Middle English word perage. See peer 2, -age
Explanation
The system of giving people titles like "Lord So-and-So," or "The Duchess of Wherever" is called peerage. The title itself is also referred to as a peerage. In a monarchy like the United Kingdom or Saudi Arabia, a peerage is a legal classification of all the ranks bestowed on the nobility. So if a country has lords, ladies, dukes, duchesses, earls, and countesses, it's the peerage that keeps track of the titles and who holds them. If you're bestowed such a title, you receive a peerage: "My grandmother inherited a peerage when her uncle died, and that's when my family got that castle in Scotland."
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.
Known as Lord Roe of West Wickham, a former firefighter and London Fire Brigade commissioner, he received a life peerage and took his seat in The House of Lords in January.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Disraeli became their leader and would twice be named prime minister before Queen Victoria elevated him to the peerage as Earl of Beaconsfield in 1876.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
He was given a life peerage to allow him to sit in the House of Lords.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
In a fascinating footnote, the disgraced admiral reclaimed his reputation and won a peerage in Britain by vanquishing the French in a 1782 naval battle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 6, 2026
Lords produced lords—not because peerage was hereditary, but because intelligence was.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
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.
