countess

noun

count·​ess ˈkau̇n-təs 

1

: the wife or widow of an earl or count

2

: a woman who holds in her own right the rank of earl or count

Examples of countess in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Following her turn as a countess in last summer’s Shakespeare in the Park production of Twelfth Night, and as a duchess in the Metropolitan Opera’s La Fille du Régiment in October, the actress will play the title role in The Misanthrope from June through August. —Lizzie Hyman, PEOPLE, 29 Apr. 2026

It had supposedly been made in the nineteen-forties, for an Italian countess or an English lady, then scrapped, and afterward either smuggled out of the workroom by a starry-eyed seamstress or, with the atelier head’s approval, given to one of the in-house models. —Han Ong, New Yorker, 15 Mar. 2026

Lang went on to appear in most of Fuller’s films, including playing a rebellious German countess in his 1980 war epic The Big Red One, and several by their friend Wim Wenders. —Erik Pedersen, Deadline, 4 Feb. 2026

There were so many senior royals still on the roster (Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor among them), that Prince Edward and Sophie, countess of Wessex (now the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh) were relatively minor public figures and had yet to see their profiles bloom. —Stephanie Bridger-Linning, Vanity Fair, 20 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

countess

noun

count·​ess ˈkau̇nt-əs 

1

: the wife or widow of a count or an earl

2

: a woman holding the rank of count or earl