landlord
Americannoun
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landlords
plural
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a person or organization that owns and leases apartments to others.
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a person who owns and leases land, buildings, etc.
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a person who owns or runs an inn, lodging house, etc.
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a landowner.
noun
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a man who owns and leases property
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a man who owns or runs a lodging house, pub, etc
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archaic the lord of an estate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of landlord
before 1000; Middle English; Old English landhlāford. See land, lord
Explanation
If you lease an apartment, the person to whom you pay rent is your landlord. A landlord owns a house, building, or property and rents it out to other people. Many people have landlords they call when their drains are clogged and mail their rent checks to on the first of each month. Business owners often have landlords too, who own their retail or office spaces. Men and women can both be landlords, although you can also call a female landlord a landlady. The concept of a landlord goes back to feudalism — the lord part comes from "Lord of the Manor."
Vocabulary lists containing landlord
Chinese History - Introductory
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Little Richard (1932–2020): Tribute List
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Chinese History - Middle School and High School
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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:
Tell the landlord the same thing, and ask if he would contact the previous tenant.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
The landlord sent a mass text saying there was an offer for $6,300.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
Cakrani said Shehu’s involvement was solely as a landlord.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026
The supposed landlord replied that the current tenants wouldn’t be leaving for a few more weeks, but she could see it once they moved out.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
At about the same time, a local neighborhood organization set up by Operation Breakthrough also demanded that the landlord lower rents or fix the houses.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
Newkirk noted that many landlords won’t allow their tenants to keep pets, reducing the number of potential homes for shelter animals.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
Last summer, as the region baked, the residents of Ellum Pointe - a whg scheme for the over-55s - began telling their landlords they simply could not cool their flats.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026
They formed relationships with landlords and building superintendents in order to exclusively list an apartment, charge tenants sky-high fees and then split the profit.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
Representatives for landlords say they understand the importance of companionship that pets offer to tenants, but they can still face costly damage.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
Its residents’ struggle to maintain their dignity despite absentee landlords and poor city services was intense and ongoing.
From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers
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.
