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• baron
  baron

  noun

  a member of the lowest grade of nobility.
• Baron
  Baron

  noun

  Michel Michel Boyron, 1653–1729, French actor.

baron

¹ American  

[bar-uhn] / ˈbær ən /

noun

barons plural

1. a member of the lowest grade of nobility.

2. (in Britain)

   1. a feudal vassal holding his lands under a direct grant from the king.

   2. a direct descendant of such a vassal or his equal in the nobility.

   3. a member of the House of Lords.

3. an important financier or industrialist, especially one with great power in a particular area.

   an oil baron.

4. a cut of mutton or lamb comprising the two loins, or saddle, and the hind legs.

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Baron ² American  

[ba-rawn] / baˈrɔ̃ /

noun

1. Michel Michel Boyron, 1653–1729, French actor.

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baron British  

/ ˈbærən /

noun

1. a member of a specific rank of nobility, esp the lowest rank in the British Isles

2. (in Europe from the Middle Ages) originally any tenant-in-chief of a king or other overlord, who held land from his superior by honourable service; a land-holding nobleman

3. a powerful businessman or financier

   a press baron

4. English law (formerly) the title held by judges of the Court of Exchequer

5. short for baron of beef

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• barons
  plural

Etymology

Origin of baron

1200–50; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French < Late Latin barōn- (stemof barō ) man < Germanic; sense “cut of beef ” perhaps by analogy with the fanciful analysis of sirloin as “Sir Loin”

Explanation

A baron is a nobleman — a member of the aristocracy. Barons are also important, powerful businessmen with huge influence over their industries. In Britain, a baron is called “Lord,” but in the States, we call them “rich.” Barons are members of the aristocracy — wealthy people born into power and influence. How high a baron ranks depends on the country, but the title always carries respect. Similarly, a business leader who is rich, powerful, and influential is a baron. The term is used in phrases such as oil baron and baron of industry. You can also call that kind of baron a big businessman, magnate, mogul, top executive, or tycoon.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

baron Baron barons

As early as 1859 the New York Times associated Cornelius Vanderbilt with the idea of the medieval robber baron, thus tarnishing the image of the country’s biggest shipowner.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 10, 2026

Not because Mullin, a wealthy plumbing baron from Oklahoma who’s served in Washington since 2013, has a distinguished legislative record.

From Slate ● Mar. 7, 2026

Anna Murdoch-Mann, writer and ex-wife of media baron Rupert Murdoch, has died aged 81, his media outlets have announced.

From BBC ● Feb. 20, 2026

She plunges into the ground, stuck but immediately on a mission: This woman is a spirit charged with guiding the soul of a dying oil baron into the afterlife.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 26, 2026

Relieved, the baron sat in the nearest chair and tried to wipe his face with a handkerchief.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood

A content creator named Baron Coleman received 503,000 views on a single stream about “suspicious” issues with the killing—far more views than he has followers.

From Slate ● Jul. 21, 2026

Marty Baron, the former executive editor of the Washington Post, put it perfectly when he noted that the administration’s obsession with leaks is actually a testament to the resilience of the press.

From Salon ● Jul. 15, 2026

Born in Gloucester in October 1993, Cottrell's mother, the Honourable Fiona Cottrell, is an aristocrat whose father, the third Baron Manton, inherited a family soap empire, the Sunday Times reports.

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 2026

Or pointed to the refrigerator case with Banquet country fried-chicken bowls, Red Baron deep-dish pizza and Snickers for sale.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026

Bando said he liked The Baron best when he was in his hole.

From "My Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George

The ruthless machinations of Gilded Age robber barons are transposed to New York’s hotels and banquet rooms—a story of love marketed to the highest bidder.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 19, 2026

Clark did not outline how a "brake pedal" for AI research and development could be created, but drew a parallel between AI and the oil boom and barons of the turn of the last century.

From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026

But mining barons, whose operations have turned from true artisanal mining to multi-million dollar operations using large machinery and fleets of small planes, have adapted quickly.

From Barron's ● May 29, 2026

Ours is a history in which New York robber barons used the promise of belonging to splinter the poor into factions and manipulate them into fighting among themselves during the Gilded Age.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 24, 2026

Here, round the King's castle, there were streets—not just one street—and castles of dependent barons, and monasteries, chapels, churches, cathedrals, markets, merchants’ houses.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White

Related Words

• aristocrat