Dictionary
Thesaurus
Reference
Translate
Web
Related Searches
on Ask.com
Synonyms
Nearby Entries
liege - 7 dictionary results
Liege Hotels
 Hotels near Liege Paris France Pay at check-in. No booking fees.
 www.priceline-europe.com

liege

  [leej, leezh]
Use liege in a Sentence
–noun
1. a feudal lord entitled to allegiance and service.
2. a feudal vassal or subject.
–adjective
3. owing primary allegiance and service to a feudal lord.
4. pertaining to the relation between a feudal vassal and lord.
5. loyal; faithful: the liege adherents of a cause.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME < OF li(e)ge ≪ Gmc *lēt- vassal + L -icus -ic; cf. ML lētī barbarians allowed to settle on Roman land (< Gmc; perh. akin to let 1 ), laeticus for *lēticus, deriv. of lētī

Li⋅ège

  [lee-eyzh; Fr. lyezh]
–noun
1. a city in E Belgium, on the Meuse River: one of the first cities attacked in World War I. 139,333.
2. a province in E Belgium. 1,019,226; 1521 sq. mi. (3940 sq. km). Capital: Liège.
Flemish, Luik.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To liege
liege   (lēj)   
n.  
  1. A lord or sovereign to whom allegiance and service are due according to feudal law.
  2. A vassal or subject owing allegiance and services to a lord or sovereign under feudal law.
  3. A loyal subject to a monarch.
adj.  
    1. Entitled to the loyalty and services of vassals or subjects: a liege lord.
    2. Bound to give such allegiance and services to a lord or monarch.
  2. Loyal; faithful.

[Middle English, from Old French, entitled to feudal allegiance, from Late Latin laeticus, being a semifree colonist in Gaul, from laetus, a semifree colonist, of Germanic origin; see lē- in Indo-European roots.]
Li·ège   (lē-āzh', lyězh)   
A city of eastern Belgium near the Dutch and German borders. First mentioned in 558, it was a noted intellectual center in the Middle Ages. Liège was held by France from 1794 to 1815 and by the Netherlands from 1815 to 1830. Population: 189,000.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Liege

Liege\ (l[=e]j), a. [OE. lige, lege, F. lige, LL. ligius, legius, liege, unlimited, complete, prob. of German origin; cf. G. ledig free from bonds and obstacles, MHG. ledec, ledic, lidic, freed, loosed, and Charta Ottonis de Benthem, ann. 1253, "ligius homo quod Teutonic[`e] dicitur ledigman," i. e., uni soli homagio obligatus, free from all obligations to others; influenced by L. ligare to bind. G. ledig perh. orig. meant, free to go where one pleases, and is perh. akin to E. lead to conduct. Cf. Lead to guide.]

1. Sovereign; independent; having authority or right to allegiance; as, a liege lord. --Chaucer.

She looked as grand as doomsday and as grave; And he, he reverenced his liege lady there. --Tennyson.

2. Serving an independent sovereign or master; bound by a feudal tenure; obliged to be faithful and loyal to a superior, as a vassal to his lord; faithful; loyal; as, a liege man; a liege subject.

3. (Old Law) Full; perfect; complete; pure. --Burrill.

Liege homage (Feudal Custom), that homage of one sovereign or prince to another which acknowledged an obligation of fealty and services.

Liege poustie [L. legitima potestas] (Scots Law), perfect, i. e., legal, power; specif., having health requisite to do legal acts.

Liege widowhood, perfect, i. e., pure, widowhood. [Obs.]

Liege

Liege\ (l[=e]j), n. 1. A free and independent person; specif., a lord paramount; a sovereign. --Mrs. Browning.

The anointed sovereign of sighs and groans, Liege of all loiterers and malcontents. --Shak.

2. The subject of a sovereign or lord; a liegeman.

A liege lord seems to have been a lord of a free band; and his lieges, though serving under him, were privileged men, free from all other obligations, their name being due to their freedom, not to their service. --Skeat.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Cite This Source

liege 
word used by a vassal to address his superior or lord in the feudal system, 1297, from Anglo-Fr. lige (1292), from O.Fr. liege, perhaps from L.L. laeticus "cultivated by serfs," from laetus "serf," which probably is from a Gmc. source (cf. O.E. læt "half-freedman, serf;" O.H.G. laz, O.Fris. lethar "freedman"). Or the M.E. word may be directly from O.H.G. leidig "free." Hence, liege-man "a vassal sworn to the service and support of a lord, who in turn is obliged to protect him" (c.1350).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Search another word or see liege on Thesaurus | Reference
Liege Hotels
 Hotels near Liege Paris France Pay at check-in. No booking fees.
 www.priceline-europe.com