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Elizabeth I

American  

noun

  1. Elizabeth Tudor, 1533–1603, queen of England 1558–1603 (successor of Mary I; daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn).


Elizabeth I British  

noun

  1. 1533–1603, queen of England (1558–1603); daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. She established the Church of England (1559) and put an end to Catholic plots, notably by executing Mary Queen of Scots (1587) and defeating the Spanish Armada (1588). Her reign was notable for commercial growth, maritime expansion, and the flourishing of literature, music, and architecture

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Elizabeth I Cultural  
  1. A queen of England in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries; a brilliant and crafty ruler who presided over the Renaissance in England. Her reign, the Elizabethan period, was a time of notable triumphs in literature (William Shakespeare rose to prominence while she was queen) and war (the defeat of the Spanish Armada). The daughter of King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth never married. She is called the “Virgin Queen” and “Good Queen Bess.”


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The state of Virginia is named after the “Virgin Queen.”

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.

Though it stretched for more than two centuries, it’s an era best known for Elizabeth I and Shakespeare, stiff ruffs and courtly processions.

From The Wall Street Journal

Dendrochronology analysis of the wooden panel the portrait was painted on dated the work to 1583, during the reign of her daughter Elizabeth I.

From BBC

More than a decade after Henry’s death, a daughter of his, Elizabeth I, became queen and restored confidence with a nationwide recoinage.

From Barron's

It is brewed in Yoker in Glasgow, shipped to China and served from a bar in Beijing where scenes from the film Braveheart play on one large television while Elizabeth I is on another.

From BBC

This year's setting is below the Lady Chapel's famous medieval vaulted ceiling, in a chapel where 15 previous kings and queens are buried, including Elizabeth I, Mary I and Charles II.

From BBC