squirearchy

or squir·ar·chy

[ skwahyuhr-ahr-kee ]

/ ˈskwaɪər ɑr ki /

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noun, plural squire·ar·chies.

the collective body of squires or landed gentry of a country.

the social, economic, and political class formed by the landed gentry.

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Origin of squirearchy

First recorded in 1795–1805; squire + -archy

OTHER WORDS FROM squirearchy

squire·ar·chal, squire·ar·chi·cal, adjective

Words nearby squirearchy

squinty, squirarchy, squircle, squire, squirearch, squirearchy, squiredom, squireen, squireling, squirm, squirmy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use squirearchy in a sentence

A league was now formed by the bureaucracy, the orthodox clergy, the provincial squirearchy, and some of the proletariat.
The Prussian Terror|Alexandre Dumas
Are the coronets of the nobility to be put up to sale like the acres of the squirearchy?
Davenport Dunn, Volume 1 (of 2)|Charles James Lever
He sketched out a system by which this new squirearchy was to be dealt with,—how courted, flattered, and rewarded.
Davenport Dunn, Volume 1 (of 2)|Charles James Lever
He had been made to understand clearly that it would be better that he should not enter in upon his squirearchy early in life.
The American Senator|Anthony Trollope

A few years since some of the most strenuous opponents of railways were to be found among the squirearchy.
Old Roads and New Roads|William Bodham Donne

British Dictionary definitions for squirearchy

squirearchy

squirarchy

/ (ˈskwaɪəˌrɑːkɪ) /

noun plural -chies

government by squires

squires collectively, esp as a political or social force

Derived forms of squirearchy

squirearchal, squirarchal, squirearchical or squirarchical, adjective

Word Origin for squirearchy

C19: from squire + -archy, on the model of hierarchy, monarchy, etc

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