demesne
Americannoun
-
possession of land as one's own.
land held in demesne.
-
an estate or part of an estate occupied and controlled by, and worked for the exclusive use of, the owner.
-
land belonging to and adjoining a manor house; estate.
-
the dominion or territory of a sovereign or state; domain.
-
a district; region.
noun
-
land, esp surrounding a house or manor, retained by the owner for his own use
-
property law the possession and use of one's own property or land
-
the territory ruled by a state or a sovereign; realm; domain
-
a region or district; domain
Other Word Forms
- demesnial adjective
Etymology
Origin of demesne
1250–1300; Middle English demeine < Anglo-French demesne, Old French demein; see domain
Explanation
In medieval Europe, a demesne was the part of a lord's land that he kept for his own use. These days, it's more often used to mean "property" or "territory." The term demesne was originally used to distinguish land totally controlled by a lord from areas that were turned over to tenants. Demesne lands were often farmed and tended by serfs, with the profits or crops going to the lord and his family. Demesne comes from the Latin dominicus, "belonging to a master," and its root domus, "house," which it shares with domicile.
Vocabulary lists containing demesne
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“In our house things were either broken or not used at all,” the 14-year-old says of her chaotic home, a once-grand demesne neglected by Caithleen’s volatile father.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 9, 2026
The show has also expanded outside the demesne walls.
From BBC • Aug. 11, 2023
And as the years progress, she gives up dreams of royalty to focus on the demesne she can control: the convent and its lands.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 7, 2021
This was especially the case in England, where the aristocracy was more dependent on the cultivation of the demesne.
From Salon • Apr. 26, 2020
The peasant moves the boundary stone And steals the lord’s demesne.
From "Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval Village" by Laura Amy Schlitz
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
