marque

[mahrk]

noun

letter of marque.
Obsolete. seizure by way of reprisal or retaliation.

Origin of marque

1375–1425; late Middle English < Middle French < Provençal marca seizure by warrant (orig. token) < Germanic; see mark¹

marque

[mahrk]

noun

a product model or type, as of a luxury or racing car.

Origin of marque

1905–10; < French: literally, mark, sign, noun derivative of marquer to mark, probably dial. derivative of Old French merc, merche boundary, boundary marker < Old Norse merki (from same Germanic base as march², mark¹, marque¹

La Marque

[luh-mahrk]

noun

a city in SE coastal Texas.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for marque

Historical Examples of marque

Letters of Marque were granted by the Governor of the Mauritius.
Famous Privateersmen and Adventurers of the Sea
Charles H. L. Johnston
Also a colloquialism for marque, as a letter of mart or marque.
The Sailor's Word-Book
William Henry Smyth
And what did your letters of marque say as to the Portuguese slaver we sank in the Gaboons?
Athelstane Ford
Allen Upward
Of course we are really a trader, though we do carry a letter of marque.
Held Fast For England
G. A. Henty
"You mean she is able to see anybody on the platform," said Marque, confused and astounded.
The Gay Rebellion
Robert W. Chambers

British Dictionary definitions for marque

marque

noun

a brand of product, esp of a car
an emblem or nameplate used to identify a product, esp a car
See letter of marque

Word Origin for marque

from French, from marquer to mark 1

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

Word Origin and History for marque

"seizure by way of reprisal," mid-15c., in letters of marque "official permission to capture enemy merchant ships," from Anglo-French mark (mid-14c.), via Old French from Old Provençal marca "reprisal," from marcar "seize as a pledge, mark," probably from a Germanic source (cf. Old High German marchon "delimit, mark;" see mark (n.1)), but the sense evolution is difficult.