grand duke

noun

1. the sovereign of a territory called a grand duchy, ranking next below a king.
2. a son of a czar or of a czar's son.

grand duke

noun

1. a prince or nobleman who rules a territory, state, or principality
2. a son or a male descendant in the male line of a Russian tsar
3. a medieval Russian prince who ruled over other princes

Other Words From

• grand-ducal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of grand duke¹

First recorded in 1685–95

Example Sentences

First recorded in the collection of King Willem II, it was passed down through royal hands to a German grand duke in the early 20th century.

From New York Times

“She was able to hobnob with Galileo and with other great thinkers. So this almost illiterate woman was suddenly at the university level, producing works of art that were then, you know, appreciated by the Grand Duke,” Falcone said.

From Seattle Times

Lucrezia was the fifth child of Cosimo de’ Medici, the grand duke of Tuscany, and his wife, Eleanor de’ Toledo.

From Seattle Times

Cosimo III, Grand Duke of Tuscany, legally established its borders in 1716, demarcating the area we now know as Chianti Classico, aka "old Chianti."

From Salon

“Sometimes,” O’Farrell writes, “it felt to her like the safest place in the world, a stone keep with a high garrison perimeter to enclose the Grand Duke’s children like a cabinet for glass figurines; at others it felt as oppressive as a prison.”

From Washington Post