: the military governor of a German city in the 12th and 13th centuries
2
: a noble ruling by hereditary right a German castle or town and its adjacent lands compare landgrave, margrave
Word History
Etymology
modification of German burggraf, from Middle High German burcgrāve, from burc fortress, town (from Old High German burg fortified place) + grāve count, from Old High German grāvo, grāvio count, overseer; akin to Old Frisian grēva overseer, Middle Dutch grave, greve, Middle Low German grēve, and perhaps to Gothic gagrefts decree
Love words?
You must — there are over 200,000 words in our free online dictionary, but you are looking for one that’s only in the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary.
Share