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baron

noun

  1. title of nobility in Europe
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Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˈbæɹən/ / /ˈbaɹən/ / /ˈbaɾən/

name

Etymology: * As a French, English, Jewish, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Czech, German, Spanish (Barón), Romanian, Serbo-Croatian, and Breton surname, all from the noun baron. Compare Barron, Lebaron. * Also as a French surname, from several places in France Le Baron. * As an Italian (Veneto) surname, variant of Barone. * Also as a Czech surname (Baroň), from a pet form of Bartoloměj. * As an Irish surname, Anglicized from Ó Bearáin; see Barnes. * General Slavic surname: Anglicization of Polish Baran (“Aries”), Ukrainian Баран (Baran), etc.

  1. A surname from French
  2. A surname from German
  3. A surname from Polish
  4. A surname from Ukrainian

noun

Etymology: From Middle English baroun, from Old French baron, from Latin barōnem, from Proto-West Germanic *barō, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- (“to bear”). Cognate with Old High German *baro (“human being, man, freeman”), Old English bora (“a man who bears responsibility, one who is in charge, a ruler”), and perhaps to Old English beorn (“man, warrior”). Used in early Germanic law in the sense of "man, human being". A Celtic origin has also been suggested; see the quote under sense 3 of Latin barō. However, the OED takes the hypothetical Proto-Celtic *bar- (“hero”) to be a figment.

  1. The male ruler of a barony.
  2. A male member of the lowest rank of English nobility (the equivalent rank in Scotland is lord).
  3. A person of great power in society, especially in business and politics.

    railroad baron

    tech baron

  4. A prisoner who gains power and influence by lending or selling goods such as tobacco.

    The first thing a baron does is to accumulate a supply of tobacco. He spends every penny he can earn on laying it in […]

    Nevertheless, from my own agonies of the first few months, after which I did not miss smoking at all, I could appreciate the need of others. It was in this atmosphere of craving that the 'barons' thrived. Barons are prisoners who lend tobacco.

  5. A baron of beef, a cut made up of a double sirloin.

    Such portentous appetites had Queequeg and Tashtego, that to fill out the vacancies made by the previous repast, often the pale Dough-Boy was fain to bring on a great baron of salt-junk, seemingly quarried out of the solid ox.

  6. Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the genus Euthalia.
  7. A husband.

    baron and femme