duchess English · revision 39725

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=c1385, Chaucer|origins=la dux}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * /ˈdʌt͡ʃɪs/, /ˈdʌt͡ʃəs/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|duchesse]], [[bor|fro|duchesse]],^(AHD 2024)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024) the feminine of [[m|fro|duc|t=duke]] with the suffix [[m|fro|-esse]] ([[-ess]]),^(MWU 2024)^(Dictionary.com 2016)^(Collins 2023) after [[la-lat|ducissa]], formed on [[m|la|dux|t=leader]], the source of [[duke]].^(OED 2026)^(AHD 2024)^(Hoad 1986)^(ODE 2010) The Anglo-Norman Dictionary records ''duchesse'' in Anglo-Norman from 1160–74.^(AND) Its relatives in the other Romance languages include [[m|it|duchessa]], [[m|es|duquesa]] and [[m|pt|duquesa]].^(Klein 1966)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The wife or widow of a duke, or a woman holding the rank of a duke in her own right: about 1385, in Chaucer's ''Legend of Good Women'',^(OED 2026) before 1300 in Barnhart, and about 1300 in Etymonline.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ In late Middle English the word could also be used as the feminine of [[lord]], meaning simply a lady (1393–1513).^(OED 2026) The spelling ''dutchess'' was usual until about 1810,^(OED 2026)^(Etymonline) and it survives in the name of Dutchess County, New York.^(Etymonline) The slang sense, a woman of imposing manner or showy looks, is recorded from about 1698 in the ''Dictionary of the Canting Crew'',^(OED 2026)^(GDoS) and later, especially in cockney use, ''duchess'' or ''dutch'' could mean one's wife or mother.^(OED 2026) In the building and paper trades it names sizes of roofing slate (1823) and writing paper (1923).^(OED 2026) In Australian English to ''duchess'' a visitor is to overwhelm them with flattering attention, as British society was said to do with colonials visiting London.^(Collins 2023)^(GDoS)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1300 – the noblewoman.^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1385 – the wife of a duke (Chaucer).^(OED 2026)

+ * 1393 – a lady (obsolete).^(OED 2026)

+ * c. 1698 – (slang) a showy or imposing woman.^(OED 2026)^(GDoS)

+ * c. 1810 – ''dutchess'' goes out of use.^(OED 2026)

+ * 1823 – a size of roofing slate.^(OED 2026)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # The [[wife]] or [[widow]] of a [[duke]].^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # A woman who holds the rank of duke in her own right.^(Collins 2023)^(MWU 2024)

+ # ''(informal)'' A woman of grand or imposing appearance or manner.^(OED 2026)^(GDoS)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # ''(Australia, informal)'' To overwhelm with flattering attention.^(Collins 2023)^(GDoS)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[duchesslike]]

+ * [[archduchess]]

+ * [[duchess potatoes]]

+ * [[grand duchess]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[duchesse]]

+ * [[duke]]

+ * [[duchy]]

+ * [[-ess]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}