lord

noun

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\ ˈlȯrd

Definition of lord

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : one having power and authority over others:

a : a ruler by hereditary right or preeminence to whom service and obedience are due

b : one of whom a fee or estate is held in feudal tenure

c : an owner of land or other real (see real entry 1 sense 2) property

d obsolete : the male head of a household

e : husband

f : one that has achieved mastery or that exercises leadership or great power in some area a drug lord

2 capitalized

a : god sense 1

b : jesus

3 : a man of rank or high position: such as

a : a feudal tenant whose right or title comes directly from the king

b : a British nobleman: such as

(1) : baron sense 2a

(2) : a hereditary peer of the rank of marquess, earl, or viscount

(3) : the son of a duke or a marquess or the eldest son of an earl

(4) : a bishop of the Church of England

c Lords plural : house of lords

4 —used as a British title: such as

a —used as part of an official title Lord AdvocateLord Mayor

b —used informally in place of the full title for a marquess, earl, or viscount

c —used for a baron

d —used by courtesy before the name and surname of a younger son of a duke or a marquess

5 : a person chosen to preside over a festival

lord

verb

lorded; lording; lords

Definition of lord (Entry 2 of 2)

intransitive verb

: to act like a lord especially : to put on airs —usually used with it lords it over his friends

Synonyms Example Sentences Phrases Containing lord Learn More About lord

Examples of lord in a Sentence

Noun He became a lord upon the death of his father. as lords of the local real estate scene, they own nearly all of the city's prime pieces of property

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Someone who saw horror as the future of movies and who fought his powerful father, a lord of old Hollywood, to make that future a reality. — Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2022 The will of Zeus was realized From the time strife first rose between the son Of Atreus, lord of men, and bright Achilles. — Sarah Ruden, National Review, 31 Mar. 2022 Promethean Japanese director Akira Kurosawa with his masterpiece historical epic Ran about a feudal lord and his three sons vying for control of it. — Donald Liebenson, Town & Country, 31 Jan. 2022 This Emperor Palpatine-esque image that positioned commissioner Manfred as the dark lord of the Sith-like MLB faction. — Jules Posner, Forbes, 26 Jan. 2022 Apple, lord of the iPhone, has nearly $17 billion in cash and more than $113 billion in marketable securities. — John Dorfman, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2021 Who knew that 2021 was just waiting for a highbrow feminist gloss on Phantom of the Opera piano goth, curated by dark-lord production gods Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross? — Alex Suskind, EW.com, 8 Dec. 2021 In 1801, while Greece was under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, several of these blocks were taken by Thomas Bruce, the lord of Elgin, who was then the British ambassador to Constantinople. — Zoe Chevalier, ABC News, 17 Nov. 2021 In England, Christian routinely stays with a future English lord whose father currently holds a seat in Parliament’s House of Lords. — San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Oct. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Nearly a decade ago, Zuckerberg recognized that Apple and Google could lord over his company via their respective mobile operating systems and app stores. — Jacob Carpenter, Fortune, 3 Feb. 2022 The cancelation of the game meant an entire year without someone being able to lord it over their best friends. — Nathan Baird, cleveland, 24 Nov. 2021 Neither the townsfolk nor the tourists lord it over the others or pity each other. — Christopher Arnott, courant.com, 17 Nov. 2021 Do not lord over them — with direct orders or by implication. — Gordon Monson, The Salt Lake Tribune, 8 Oct. 2021 That said, Kalmar doesn’t plan to lord his experience over his future students, which will include instrumentalists as well as aspiring conductors. — Zachary Lewis, cleveland, 10 May 2021 The Spartans can lord it over the Wolverines in football until at least Oct. 16, 2021. — Ryan Ford, Detroit Free Press, 1 Nov. 2020 The novel is the story of a great inversion, one in which the ruled replace their rulers but end up lording it over each other in just the same way as the old regime. — Gerard Baker, WSJ, 24 Jan. 2020 Yet right here, politicians act as if a health crisis gives them license to lord over the most private activities of America people in ways that are wholly inconsistent with the spirit and letter of the Constitution. — David Harsanyi, National Review, 13 Apr. 2020 See More

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