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fief

[ feef ]

noun

  1. a fee or feud held of a feudal lord; a tenure of land subject to feudal obligations.
  2. a territory held in fee.


fief

/ fiːf /

noun

  1. (in feudal Europe) the property or fee granted to a vassal for his maintenance by his lord in return for service
“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


fief

  1. Under feudalism , a landed estate given by a lord to a vassal in return for the vassal's service to the lord. The vassal could use the fief as long as he remained loyal to the lord.


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Word History and Origins

Origin of fief1

1605–15; < French, variant of Old French fieu, fie, cognate with Anglo-French fe fee < Germanic; compare Old High German fihu, Old English feoh cattle, property; akin to Latin pecū flock of sheep, pecus cattle, pecūnia wealth
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Word History and Origins

Origin of fief1

C17: from Old French fie , of Germanic origin; compare Old English fēo cattle, money, Latin pecus cattle, pecūnia money, Greek pokos fleece
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Example Sentences

If your daughter insists upon refusing to select from among my men, and marries Eucher, the fief reverts to me.

"No fief can remain in the possession of a woman," was the sententious utterance of the bailiff.

This serf, who belonged to the abbey of St. Vincent, a fief of the bishopric, was named Thiegaud.

This is a fief, of which a like succession of proprietors would render nobility difficult to support.

At Vaucouleurs she was heard to say that the Dauphin held the kingdom in fief (en commende).

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