Meanings
nounearldom (plural earldoms)
plural earldoms
- The rank of being an earl.
And, look when I am king, claim thou of me / The earldom of Hereford, and all the movables / Whereof the king my brother was possess'd.
c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals) - The territory controlled by an earl.
Origin
- Old Englisheorldōm
- Middle Englisherldom
- Englishearldom
From Middle English erldom, from Old English eorldōm, equivalent to earl + -dom. Compare English jarldom. Cognate also with Scots eirldome, ȝerledom, erldom (“earldom”).
More words from Middle English, Old English
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Italian contea, contea
- contearank
- conteaterritory
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
APA
earldom. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/earldom
MLA
“earldom.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/earldom. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “earldom,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/earldom.
Source: earldom on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.