duchess
Americannoun
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duchesses
plural
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the wife or widow of a duke.
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a woman who holds in her own right the sovereignty or titles of a duchy.
noun
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the wife or widow of a duke
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a woman who holds the rank of duke in her own right
verb
Gender
See -ess.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of duchess
1300–50; Middle English duchesse < Anglo-French, Old French, feminine derivative of duc duke; see -ess
Explanation
A duchess is a female member of a royal or noble family. If a woman marries a duke, she becomes a duchess. Many duchesses inherit their title when they're born — there are still hereditary dukes and duchesses in the U.K., for example. In other cases, a woman marries into a noble family and finds herself with the title. The word duchess comes from the feminine form of the Latin dux, "leader or commander."
Vocabulary lists containing duchess
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Meghan did not make any public appearances, amid a row over security, but the duke and duchess and their two children held a private meeting with King Charles and Queen Camilla at Highgrove House.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
The former duchess has already been dropped by multiple charities over her Epstein links.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
He and the duchess will serve as co-producers on the new film adaptation of No Way Out.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
It is not known what the duchess will be paid for her involvement in the event, which has not sold out and is still advertising a "handful of additional rooms".
From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2026
The movie star Clark Gable visited the hotel, and I once got to meet a duke and duchess from England.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
"From valets to duchesses, from three-piece suits to the Roaring Twenties, there is something for every taste," it boasts on its website.
From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026
“Snobbery has gone out of fashion, and in our shops you will find duchesses jostling with typists to buy the same dress,” Quant once said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2023
Images of two duchesses linger in playwright Vivian J.O.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 4, 2021
Much newspaper acreage has already been devoted to comparing the duchesses who at face value appear to have so much in common.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 9, 2020
The English ladies who are so fond of ermine are unconscious of the fact that formerly none but queens, duchesses, and the Chancellor of France were permitted to wear this royal fur.
From The Works of Honor? de Balzac About Catherine de' Medici, Seraphita and Other Stories by Balzac, Honor? de
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
