maharaja

noun

ma·​ha·​ra·​ja ˌmä-hə-ˈrä-jə How to pronounce maharaja (audio)
-ˈrä-zhə
variants or maharajah
: a Hindu prince ranking above a raja

Examples of maharaja in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web In 1849, a young maharaja, a regional ruler, who was only 10 or 11 years old was coerced into giving it to the British when the province of Punjab was annexed. Patrick Smith, NBC News, 4 May 2023 He is borne aloft, like a maharaja or an infant. Garret Keizer, Harper's Magazine, 17 Aug. 2021 In the nineteen-seventies, the young maharaja began to restore the fort, to open it to the public. Dorothy Wickenden, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2022 Named Sriwijaya, it was ruled by a maharaja, centered on the island of Sumatra in what is now Indonesia, and flourished in the period C.E. 650 to 1377. Scientific American, 28 July 2022 The British enjoyed traveling to Kashmir in the summer months to escape the heat and dust of the Indian plains, but the local Hindu maharaja denied them permission to own land. Ranjan Pal, CNN, 19 Nov. 2021 The maharaja then instructed that Lakshmi Bai would rule as regent until the boy came of age. National Geographic, 6 Oct. 2020 In 1842 the young Manikarnika married the much older Gangadhar Rao, the maharaja, or king, of Jhansi. National Geographic, 6 Oct. 2020 Historians say the maharaja brought land ownership rights on the insistence of powerful Kashmiri Hindus. The Christian Science Monitor, 4 Aug. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'maharaja.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Hindi & Urdu mahārāja, from Sanskrit, from mahat great + rājan raja; akin to Latin rex king — more at much, royal

First Known Use

1698, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of maharaja was in 1698

Dictionary Entries Near maharaja

Cite this Entry

“Maharaja.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/maharaja. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

maharaja

noun
ma·​ha·​ra·​ja
variants or maharajah
ˌmä-hə-ˈräj-ə How to pronounce maharaja (audio)
-ˈräzh-ə
: a Hindu prince ranking above a raja
Etymology

from Sanskrit (ancient language of India) mahārāja "maharaja," from mahat "great" and rājan "king, raja"

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