archduke

noun arch·duke \ -ˈdük , -ˈdyük \

Updated on: 13 May 2018

Definition of archduke

1 : a sovereign prince

2 : a prince of the imperial family of Austria

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archdukedom

play \-dəm\ noun

See archduke defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of archduke from the Web

In 1918, Gavrilo Princip, 23, the assassin of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and the archduke's wife, Sophie, died in prison of tuberculosis.

— kaylee remington, cleveland.com, "Cleveland police investigating after 6-month-old baby dies," 28 Apr. 2018
WHEN a Serb gunman shot an Austrian archduke in the summer of 1914, the nations of Europe tumbled into war with all the grace of bowling pins.

— The Economist, "If the Ottoman Empire had not collapsedHad the Ottoman Empire been saved rather than sunk," 13 July 2017
No one thought an obscure Austrian archduke’s assassination in 1914 would lead to some 18 million dead by 1918.

— victor davis hanson, The Mercury News, "Hanson: Reassertion of power creates risk to U.S.," 6 Apr. 2017
Both laypeople and experts fear that just as in 1914 the murder of an Austrian archduke sparked the First World War, in 2017 some incident in the Syrian Desert or an unwise move in the Korean Peninsula might ignite a global conflict.

— yuval noah harari, Time, "Why It’s No Longer Possible for Any Country to Win a War," 23 June 2017
In 1914 an archduke’s murder in Sarajevo caused economically interdependent states in Europe to fight a giant war of survival, so why can’t disputes over Asian rocks, reefs and artificial islands create a massive conflagration today?

— thomas j. christensen, New York Times, "Hemispheric Pressure: As Asian Powers Rise, How Should the West Respond?," 12 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'archduke.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.