lord

[lawrd]

noun

1. a person who has authority, control, or power over others; a master, chief, or ruler.

2. a person who exercises authority from property rights; an owner of land, houses, etc.

3. a person who is a leader or has great influence in a chosen profession.

   the great lords of banking.

4. a feudal superior; the proprietor of a manor.

5. a titled nobleman or peer; a person whose ordinary appellation contains by courtesy the title Lord or some higher title.

6. Lords, the Lords Spiritual and Lords Temporal comprising the House of Lords

7. Lord, (in Britain)

   1. the title of certain high officials (used with some other title, name, or the like).

      Lord Mayor of London.

   2. the formally polite title of a bishop.

      Lord Bishop of Durham.

   3. the title informally substituted for Marquis, Earl, Viscount, etc., as in the use of Lord Kitchener for Earl Kitchener.

8. Lord, the Supreme Being; God.

9. Christianity.,  Lord, the Savior, Jesus Christ.

10. Astrology.,  a planet having dominating influence.

interjection

1. Often Lord (used in exclamatory phrases to express surprise, elation, etc.).

   Lord, what a beautiful day!

lord

¹

/ lɔːd /

noun

1. a person who has power or authority over others, such as a monarch or master

2. a male member of the nobility, esp in Britain

3. (in medieval Europe) a feudal superior, esp the master of a manor Compare lady

4. a husband considered as head of the household (archaic except in the facetious phrase lord and master )

5. astrology a planet having a dominating influence

6. a respectful form of address used to a judge, bishop, or nobleman

verb

1. rare,  (tr) to make a lord of (a person)

2. to act in a superior manner towards (esp in the phrase lord it over )

Lord

²

/ lɔːd /

noun

1. a title given to God or Jesus Christ

2. 1. a title given to men of high birth, specifically to an earl, marquess, baron, or viscount

   2. a courtesy title given to the younger sons of a duke or marquess

   3. the ceremonial title of certain high officials or of a bishop or archbishop

      Lord Mayor

      Lord of Appeal

      Law Lord

      Lord Bishop of Durham

interjection

1. (sometimes not capital) an exclamation of dismay, surprise, etc

   Good Lord!

   Lord only knows!

Other Word Forms

• lordlike adjective
• lordless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of lord¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English lord, lover(e)d, Old English hlāford, hlāfweard literally, “loaf-keeper”; loaf ¹, ward; lady ( def. )

Word History and Origins

Origin of lord¹

Old English hlāford bread keeper; see _loaf ¹ , _ward

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. lord it, to assume airs of importance and authority; behave arrogantly or dictatorially; domineer.

   to lord it over the menial workers.

More idioms and phrases containing lord

• drunk as a lord

Example Sentences

Now, the Duffer Brothers are at last showing what happened to Will while he was trapped in the Upside Down, the phantasmic shadow realm ruled by a man-made demon lord.

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But the most important thing is to not act like some wealthy nob, even though most of them are, lording your superiority over the common folk whose votes are necessary for victory.

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Cuzen Matcha Maker Gift Kit – Matcha is traditionally prepared with a stone mill and bamboo whisk, but lord knows most coffee shops you order it from are doing no such thing.

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“We know the address of every drug lord. ... We know their front door. We know everything about every one of them. They’re killing our people. It’s like a war.”

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Whereupon the current lord of Ashton Place jumped up to help his wobbly, not-really-dead father back to a comfortable chair.

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