countess

[ koun-tis ]

noun

1. the wife or widow of a count in the nobility of Continental Europe or of an earl in the British peerage.
2. a woman having the rank of a count or earl in her own right.

countess

/ ˈkaʊntɪs /

noun

1. the wife or widow of a count or earl
2. a woman of the rank of count or earl

Gender Note

What's the difference between countess and count? See -ess.

Word History and Origins

Origin of countess¹

First recorded in 1125–75; Middle English c(o)untesse, from Anglo-French; count ², -ess

Example Sentences

Pearson got the young countess — who was desperate to escape her domineering mother — to accept his marriage proposal by promising that he’d agree to a divorce with no conditions after two years if she wanted it.

From Washington Post

When I tell her that Clooney is rumored to also kiss the Dowager Countess during the episode, she chuckles.

From The Daily Beast

Kate - known as the Countess of Strathearn when north of the border - wore £425 blue and grey coat by British label Moloh.

From The Daily Beast

Vacations are as mysterious to me as weekends are to the Dowager Countess of Grantham.

From The Daily Beast

Dame Maggie Smith's fiery Dowager Countess will get a confidante in the form of Lady Shackleton, played by Dame Harriet Walters.

From The Daily Beast

Just look at their company: Countess LuAnn, Steve Harvey, Jessica Seinfeld, Paris Hilton.

From The Daily Beast

How little did he divine that the letter of the doctor was called forth by a communication from the countess-dowager.

From Project Gutenberg

The Countess drew a beautiful miniature from its case, which lay on the sofa near her, and presented it to her young charge.

From Project Gutenberg

This haughty Countess, by the way, has always had a great fascination for me, because she looks like a woman who "has a history."

From Project Gutenberg

And the countess-dowager fanned herself complacently, and neither she nor Maude cared for the absence of a groomsman.

From Project Gutenberg

The countess-dowager was not very adroit at spelling and composition, whether French or English, as you observe.

From Project Gutenberg

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