barony

noun

bar·​ony ˈber-ə-nē How to pronounce barony (audio)
ˈba-rə-
plural baronies
1
: the domain, rank, or dignity of a baron
2
: a vast private landholding
3
: a field of activity under the sway of an individual or a special group

Examples of barony in a Sentence

He inherited the barony from his father. no longer is the city's social and cultural life the barony of a few old-line families
Recent Examples on the Web Cyril was promoted by Gladstone from an MP to a barony in 1892. Hermione Lee, The New York Review of Books, 2 Feb. 2023 Thanks to his accumulation of new wealth, Édouard Louis Joseph Empain was raised to a barony by the Belgian king in 1907. Jonathan Kirsch, Washington Post, 3 June 2022 His namesake grandfather was a man of modest origins who had received his barony from Belgium’s King Leopold II in recognition of his accomplishments as an industrialist. Tom Sancton, Town & Country, 31 Mar. 2022 Wado, who inherited the barony, proudly wore the family crest on his signet ring and freely used his Belgian title in France. Tom Sancton, Town & Country, 31 Mar. 2022 The owner of the land, and the third partner in the project, was the St. Joe Company, a timber barony turned real-estate developer—and one of Florida’s biggest landholders. Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2022 When the emperor tired of him, Frank and his followers moved again and took up residence in the German barony of Offenbach, where Frank died several years later. Jake Bittle, The New Republic, 2 Mar. 2022

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

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of barony was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near barony

Cite this Entry

“Barony.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barony. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.

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