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• burgess
  burgess

  noun

  a representative in the popular branch of the colonial legislature of Virginia or Maryland.
• Burgess
  Burgess

  noun

  Anthony, 1917–93, English novelist and critic.

burgess

¹ American  

[bur-jis] / ˈbɜr dʒɪs /

noun

1. American History. a representative in the popular branch of the colonial legislature of Virginia or Maryland.

2. (formerly) a representative of a borough in the British Parliament.

3. Rare. an inhabitant of an English borough.

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Burgess ² American  

[bur-jis] / ˈbɜr dʒɪs /

noun

1. Anthony, 1917–93, English novelist and critic.

2. (Frank) Gelett 1866–1951, U.S. illustrator and humorist.

3. Thornton Waldo, 1874–1965, U.S. author, especially of children's books.

4. a male given name.

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burgess ¹ British  

/ ˈbɜːdʒɪs /

noun

1. 1. a citizen or freeman of a borough

   2. any inhabitant of a borough

2. English history a Member of Parliament from a borough, corporate town, or university

3. a member of the colonial assembly of Maryland or Virginia

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Burgess ² British  

/ ˈbɜːdʒɪs /

noun

1. Anthony , real name John Burgess Wilson . 1917–93, English novelist and critic: his novels include A Clockwork Orange (1962), Tremor of Intent (1966), Earthly Powers (1980), and Any Old Iron (1989)

2. Guy . 1911–63, British spy, who fled to the Soviet Union (with Donald Maclean) in 1951

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Etymology

Origin of burgess

1175–1225; Middle English burgeis < Anglo-French, Old French, equivalent to burg city (< Germanic ) + -eis < Latin -ēnsis -ensis; cf. -ese

Explanation

Historically, a burgess was an important citizen. A free, male inhabitant of a medieval English borough was known as a burgess. A burgess was originally a fairly ordinary citizen, and the word shares a root with the French bourgeois, "member of the middle class." In England, it came to mean an elected official, or someone who represents a borough in the House of Commons. The American Colonies of Virginia and Maryland adopted a similar use of burgess, establishing a House of Burgess where elected representatives governed alongside a British-appointed governor.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

burgess Burgess

Since the conquerors felt they must stick together, it was possible for an ambitious young Norman lad, though only the son of a Cheapside burgess, to get a helping hand from Norman nobles.

From Time Magazine Archive

Bagpipes welcomed the Eisenhowers to Maybole, where the General was made a freeman and burgess.

From Time Magazine Archive

In 1551 he was admitted burgess of Geneva, and in 1553 made pastor of a country church in the neighbourhood.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 4 "G" to "Gaskell, Elizabeth" by Various

He apparently lived in Lancaster for awhile because he was a burgess from that county in 1652.

From The Stronghold A Story of Historic Northern Neck of Virginia and Its People by Miriam Haynie

But, not being the son of a burgess, and not having served his apprenticeship in the town, he was forbidden by the guilds, or trades-unions, to open a shop in Glasgow.

From A History of the Growth of the Steam-Engine by Robert H. Thurston

"July 2026 was the third consecutive month of exceptional heat in western Europe," said Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

The world, Burgess said, needs to get to net-zero emissions from the burning of fossil fuels as soon as possible.

From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026

A circulation pattern over Europe is creating "the equivalent of a traffic jam in the atmosphere which locks in heat", Samantha Burgess from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, told AFP.

From Barron's ● Jun. 23, 2026

The Americans hardly needed any help, but Australia gifted the U.S. its first goal anyway when defender Cameron Burgess deflected in a cross from Folarin Balogun in the 11th minute.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026

Either something else had happened, or old Mrs. Burgess had come back from the dead to curse Nan for tearing down her curtains.

From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry

Related Words

• inhabitant
• national
• resident
• taxpayer