peerage

peer·age | \ ˈpir-ij

How to pronounce peerage (audio)

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Definition of peerage

1 : the body of peers

2 : the rank or dignity of a peer

3 : a book containing a list of peers with their genealogy, history, and titles

Examples of peerage in a Sentence

He was given the peerage after years of devoted service to the community.

Recent Examples on the Web Subject to a dizzying hierarchy of peerage and obscure jurisdiction, justice eludes him at every opportunity. — Dustin Illingworth, The New Yorker, "“Michael Kohlhaas,” the Book That Made the Novel Modern," 20 May 2020 There, Claflin married a member of the English peerage and became Lady Cook, Viscountess of Montserrat. — Lila Thulin, Smithsonian Magazine, "Nine Women Whose Remarkable Lives Deserve the Biopic Treatment," 7 Feb. 2020 In 1999, Lord Snowdon was awarded life peerage, which gave him the title of baron and secured his seat in the House of Lords until his retirement in 2016. — Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, "Antony Armstrong-Jones Was Much More Than Just Princess Margaret's Husband," 17 Nov. 2019 The Brexit Party leader told the Daily Mirror that he had been offered a peerage in Britain’s House of Lords last week, but turned it down. — Adam Taylor, Washington Post, "Fear and loathing ahead of the British election," 12 Nov. 2019 Many of the reforms have been championed by Lady Newlove, who was given a peerage in 2010 and has held the new post of victims’ commissioner for the past seven years. — The Economist, "Victims get a bigger role in prosecuting those who wronged them," 14 June 2019 His father, Charles Jenkinson, had been a political man of business and parliamentary manager, sufficiently valuable to be raised to the peerage as a reward for his service. — Allan Massie, WSJ, "‘Lord Liverpool’ Review: A Tory in His Prime," 5 Aug. 2018 One thing is for sure: Their eldest son will eventually inherit the title Duke of Sussex, but a daughter cannot per the rules of the British peerage right now. — Caroline Picard, Good Housekeeping, "Meghan Markle and Prince Harry Are Expecting Their First Child," 15 Oct. 2018 Renée Kuo, the managing director of Debrett's, the authority on British peerage and etiquette, agrees. — Caroline Hallemann, Town & Country, "The Very British Reason Meghan Markle Keeps Wearing Blush and Beige," 1 July 2018

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

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Last Updated

2 Jun 2020

Cite this Entry

“Peerage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/peerage. Accessed 3 Jun. 2020.

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