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• prince
  prince

  noun

  a nonreigning male member of a royal family.
• Prince
  Prince

  noun

  Harold S(mith) Hal, 1928–2019, U.S. stage director and producer.

prince

¹ American  

[prins] / prɪns /

noun

• princes
  plural

1. a nonreigning male member of a royal family.

2. History/Historical. a sovereign or monarch; king.

3. (in Great Britain) a son or grandson (if the child of a son) of a king or queen.

4. the English equivalent of any of various titles of nobility in other countries.

5. a holder of such a title.

6. the ruler of a small state, as one actually or nominally subordinate to a suzerain.

   Monaco is ruled by a prince.

7. a person or thing that is chief or preeminent in any class, group, etc..

   a merchant prince.

8. a person possessing admirably fine and genial characteristics.

   He is a prince of a man.

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Prince ² American  

[prins] / prɪns /

noun

1. Harold S(mith) Hal, 1928–2019, U.S. stage director and producer.

2. Prince Rogers Nelson, 1958–2016, U.S. singer, songwriter, and guitarist.

3. a male given name.

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prince ¹ British  

/ prɪns /

noun

1. (in Britain) a son of the sovereign or of one of the sovereign's sons

2. a nonreigning male member of a sovereign family

3. the monarch of a small territory, such as Monaco, usually called a principality, that was at some time subordinate to an emperor or king

4. any sovereign; monarch

5. a nobleman in various countries, such as Italy and Germany

6. an outstanding member of a specified group

   a merchant prince

7. informal a generous and charming man

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Prince ² British  

/ prɪns /

noun

1. full name Prince Rogers Nelson. born 1958, US rock singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. His albums include Dirty Mind (1981), Purple Rain (1984), Parade (1986), and Sign o' the Times (1987)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• princeship
  noun
• princeless
  adjective
• princelike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• princes
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of prince

1175–1225; Middle English < Old French < Latin prīncip- (stem of prīnceps ) first, principal (adj.), principal person, leader (noun), equivalent to prīn- for prīmus prime + -cep- (combining form of capere to take) + -s nominative singular ending

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Explanation

A prince is royalty, the son of a king or queen. Originally, a prince was the ruler of and individual territory, also known as “principalities.” A prince is a popular fairy tale hero, but there are real live ones, too. A prince is the son of a monarch, possibly even the person who stands to inherit the title of king after his father's death. Sometimes, though, a prince is simply a member of the royal family, or even a ruler over a small area of the monarch's country. Prince comes from the Latin princeps, "first man" or "ruler," from primus, "first." A prince is often first in line to inherit the throne.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

prince Prince princes

Another unlikely friend of the American prisoners is the princess’s cousin, Capt. Constantin “Buzz” Cantacuzino, a fighter ace and prince whose ancestry reaches back to Vlad the Impaler.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026

"That lack of ego is really important in a world that everyone wants to show how amazing they all are… Kevin does it very quietly very subtly," explained the prince.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

"It was very emotional actually and, for me, doing personal, emotional work is more fulfilling," the prince said.

From BBC ● Oct. 26, 2026

As Norton spoke about the initiative with the trio he surprised the audience by then inviting the prince out to join them on the sofa.

From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026

The prince of the Red Woods glared at his friend and said, “I AM NOT A BUNNY!”

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova

“Obviously, the market is digesting those right now. Those just aren’t the sorts of deals that we would ever do,” Prince says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

Cambodian authorities have said he is among at least six Prince Group ringleaders arrested, while casinos, buildings and other real estate valued at nearly $1 billion have been frozen.

From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2026

In the company’s earnings release, CEO Matthew Prince cited an acceleration in enterprise customer demand.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 5, 2026

There is a "terrifying prospect" of more UK wildfires in future due to climate change and preparation will be "crucial", the Prince of Wales has said.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

“But if she is like us, if she must walk in shadow because her heart has stopped beating, then she has everything to gain from placing her trust in the Prince of Demons.”

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

In Zvirynets—once the hunting grounds of medieval princes, now a leafy upscale neighborhood—residents hurry to the subway station.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 4, 2026

Each trade has its kings and queens, its princes and princesses.

From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026

Working through more than 6,500 pages in Kolkata's National Library, he followed princes, generals, courtiers, royal women, imperial eunuchs and many others through tens of thousands of entries.

From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026

This changed when “Heated Rivalry” actors Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams broke the formula, starring as two rival fae princes in “Ember & Ice,” Quinn’s most popular series to date.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026

Pumpkins turn into carriages, frogs into princes, mermaids into girls.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

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