prince

¹ American  

[prins] / prɪns /

noun

1. a nonreigning male member of a royal family.

2. History/Historical. a sovereign or monarch; king.

3. (in Great Britain) a son or grandson (if the child of a son) of a king or queen.

4. the English equivalent of any of various titles of nobility in other countries.

5. a holder of such a title.

6. the ruler of a small state, as one actually or nominally subordinate to a suzerain.

   Monaco is ruled by a prince.

7. a person or thing that is chief or preeminent in any class, group, etc..

   a merchant prince.

8. a person possessing admirably fine and genial characteristics.

   He is a prince of a man.

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Prince ² American  

[prins] / prɪns /

noun

1. Harold S(mith) Hal, 1928–2019, U.S. stage director and producer.

2. Prince Rogers Nelson, 1958–2016, U.S. singer, songwriter, and guitarist.

3. a male given name.

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prince ¹ British  

/ prɪns /

noun

1. (in Britain) a son of the sovereign or of one of the sovereign's sons

2. a nonreigning male member of a sovereign family

3. the monarch of a small territory, such as Monaco, usually called a principality, that was at some time subordinate to an emperor or king

4. any sovereign; monarch

5. a nobleman in various countries, such as Italy and Germany

6. an outstanding member of a specified group

   a merchant prince

7. informal a generous and charming man

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Prince ² British  

/ prɪns /

noun

1. full name Prince Rogers Nelson. born 1958, US rock singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. His albums include Dirty Mind (1981), Purple Rain (1984), Parade (1986), and Sign o' the Times (1987)

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Other Word Forms

• princeless adjective
• princelike adjective
• princeship noun

Etymology

Origin of prince

1175–1225; Middle English < Old French < Latin prīncip- (stem of prīnceps ) first, principal (adj.), principal person, leader (noun), equivalent to prīn- for prīmus prime + -cep- (combining form of capere to take) + -s nominative singular ending

Example Sentences

"There's no real contender, no crown prince within the party, so the current situation will increase internal power struggles," suggested Christine Cordsen, political analyst at public broadcaster DR.

From Barron's • Mar. 25, 2026

The company has also graced the opening ceremonies of the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City and even performed at 3 a.m. on New Year’s Day for the prince of Morocco in 1978.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026

He was born before his mother married Norway's crown prince in 2001, and grew up within the royal family without being a member of it.

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

Last week, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, the crown prince of Dubai and the U.A.E.’s defense minister, convened some 300 business leaders promising the executives that “we will emerge stronger.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026

The prince rambled on and on until he worked himself into so much excitement he literally shut down and fell asleep.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova