squire

[skwahyuh r]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR squire ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

(in England) a country gentleman, especially the chief landed proprietor in a district.

(in the Middle Ages) a young man of noble birth who as an aspirant to knighthood served a knight.

a personal attendant, as of a person of rank.

a man who accompanies or escorts a woman.

a title applied to a justice of the peace, local judge, or other local dignitary of a rural district or small town.

verb (used with object), squired, squir·ing.

to attend as, or in the manner of, a squire.

to escort (a woman), as to a dance or social gathering.

Origin of squire

1250–1300; Middle English squier; aphetic variant of esquire

Related formssquire·less, adjectivesquire·like, adjectiveun·squired, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for squire

attend, chaperon, assist, serve, companion, escort, date

Examples from the Web for squire

Contemporary Examples of squire

Seemingly sad beyond consolation, the widow begs the squire to finish her off the same way.
Read This and Blush: Naughty Medieval French Tales
Yunte Huang
June 13, 2013

Historical Examples of squire

He made his way to the house of Squire Paine, and, after a brief pause, was admitted.
Brave and Bold
Horatio Alger
His guns, dogs, and horses, were the things the squire held most dear.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. 327
Various
"Nay, I had other things upon my mind," the squire answered.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
"As empty as an English squire, coz," cried the first speaker.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
I see that your squire's eyes are starting from his head like a trussed crab.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle

British Dictionary definitions for squire

squire

noun

a country gentleman in England, esp the main landowner in a rural community

feudal history a young man of noble birth, who attended upon a knight

rare a man who courts or escorts a woman

informal, mainly British a term of address used by one man to another, esp, unless ironic, to a member of a higher social class

Australian an immature snapperSee snapper (def. 2)

verb

(tr) (of a man) to escort (a woman)

Word Origin for squire

C13: from Old French esquier; see esquire

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 squire

late 13c., "young man who attends a knight," later "member of the landowning class ranking below a knight" (c.1300), from Old French esquier "squire," literally "shield carrier" (see esquire). Meaning "country gentleman, landed proprietor" is from 1670s; as a general term of address to a gentleman, it is attested from 1828.

"to attend (a lady) as a gallant," late 14c., from squire (n.). Related: Squired; squiring.