fiefdom

American  

[feef-duhm] / ˈfif dəm /

noun

1. the estate or domain of a feudal lord.

2. Informal. anything, as an organization or real estate, owned or controlled by one dominant person or group.

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fiefdom British  

/ ˈfiːfdəm /

noun

1. (in feudal Europe) the property owned by a lord

2. an area over which a person or organization exerts authority or influence

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Etymology

Origin of fiefdom

First recorded in 1805–15; fief + -dom

Example Sentences

J. Edgar Hoover, who led the FBI for 48 years, had established a personal fiefdom devoted to consolidating power and pursuing his own personal obsessions, sometimes with blackmail and coercion.

From Salon

He felt that Warner had too many fiefdoms that needed to be broken down and consolidated.

From The Wall Street Journal

Some 44,000 security forces have been deployed across the country of 30 million to keep protests in check, especially in former opposition fiefdoms in the south and west.

From Barron's

I believe in the government institutions that make us a union of states rather than a pastiche of fiefdoms.

From Salon

Rangel’s attorney, Tamar Arminak, said her client felt vindicated by the jury’s decision, after spending years trying to blow the whistle about a division that was essentially run as its own fiefdom.

From Los Angeles Times