viscount

[vahy-kount]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR viscount ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a nobleman next below an earl or count and next above a baron.

History/Historical. a deputy of a count or earl.

(in England) a sheriff.

Origin of viscount

1350–1400; Middle English viscounte < Anglo-French; Old French visconte (French vicomte), equivalent to vis vice³ + counte count², translation Medieval Latin vicecomes

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

Related Words for viscount

aristocrat, patrician, emperor, commander, liege, captain, prince, nobleman, superior, overlord, baron, sovereign, bishop, potentate, monarch, leader, dad, noble, ruler, peer

Examples from the Web for viscount

Contemporary Examples of viscount

Viscount Mandeville, like many British aristocrats, had met her in the U.S. while “hunting” for an American wife.
The Real-Life ‘Downton’ Millionairesses Who Changed Britain
Tim Teeman
December 31, 2014
At no time during the shoot was Viscount Severn directly in front of the Earl of Wessex.
Prince Charles Photographed Shooting, Charges of Animal Cruelty and Royal Hypocrisy Reignited
Tom Sykes
December 1, 2014
From 1986 to 1995, the Viscount Althorp, as young Charles was then known, worked as a correspondent for NBC, most often for Today.
NBC’s Today Show ‘Hires’ Pippa Middleton
Lloyd Grove, Tom Sykes
November 5, 2014
Her father was a Viscount, so Taylor married into the Catalan aristocracy.
Whit Stillman on the 20th Anniversary of ‘Barcelona’, His New Amazon Series, and the Myth of the Ugly Expat
Michael Weiss
August 10, 2014
The four page boys listed in today's programme were Hugo Bertie, Viscount Aithrie, Charles Armstrong-Jones and Arthur Chatto.
Thump! Audible Crash As Queen's Page Boy Collapses At Opening of Parliament
Tom Sykes
June 4, 2014

Historical Examples of viscount

"I suppose you have heard from Viscount de la Choue," said she.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
She was the daughter of one Viscount and the sister of another.
The Market-Place
Harold Frederic
And yet, what could Davis mean by passing him off as the Viscount?
Davenport Dunn, Volume 2 (of 2)
Charles James Lever
All I say is, give me a Viscount for a son-in-law, and see if I don't 'work the oracle.'
Davenport Dunn, Volume 2 (of 2)
Charles James Lever
This is the writ of summons calling him to the Lords as Viscount Lackington.
Davenport Dunn, Volume 2 (of 2)
Charles James Lever

British Dictionary definitions for viscount

viscount

noun

(in the British Isles) a nobleman ranking below an earl and above a baron

(in various countries) a son or younger brother of a countSee also vicomte

(in medieval Europe) the deputy of a count

Word Origin for viscount

C14: from Old French visconte, from Medieval Latin vicecomes, from Late Latin vice- vice ³ + comes count ²

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 viscount

late 14c., "deputy of a count or earl," from Anglo-French and Old French visconte, from Medieval Latin vicecomes (genitive vicecomitis), from Late Latin vice- "deputy" (see vice-) + Latin comes "member of an imperial court, nobleman" (see count (n.)). As a rank in British peerage, first recorded 1440, when John, Baron Beaumont, was made one by Henry VI.