(often initial capital letter) a term of respect used when speaking of or to certain noblemen (usually preceded by his oryour ).
the state or dignity of a lord.
the authority or power of a lord.
the domain of a lord.
British. a term of respect used when speaking of or to judges (usually preceded by his oryour ).
before 900; Middle English; Old English hlāfordscipe. See lord, -ship
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“It would be superfluous in me,” Abraham Lincoln’s emissary Charles Francis Adams wrote to the British foreign secretary, “to point out to your lordship that this is war.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
It says: "For, as long as 100 of us remain alive, never will we on any conditions be subjected to the lordship of the English."
From BBC ● Oct. 23, 2021
Who may himself be a property developer now; one can’t keep track of the many business interests of his lordship.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 11, 2019
Does his lordship simply need some Pepto, or is something more dire in store?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 25, 2016
Robert made Isaac the heir to all his property, including the lordship of the manor, and Hannah brought to the union as her dowry property worth £50 per year.
From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin
To think his Lordship did not break his bones!
From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2023
"If your Lordship should consider that these observations may disgust or scandalise the learned, I earnestly beg your Lordship to regard them as private and to publish or destroy them as your Lordship sees fit."
From Salon ● Jan. 2, 2023
“His Lordship summed up the Evidence in a very moving Speech to the Jury, wherein he said, he never met with a Case so barbarous and unnatural,” the magazine reported.
From Washington Post ● May 15, 2022
Stony Stoica, 44, from Lordship Lane, is due to appear at Croydon Magistrates' Court on Monday, the Metropolitan Police said.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2021
“Excuse me, Lordship, sir,” Alexander said, after giving his head a shake.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
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.
