Definition of "marchese" []

• An Italian nobleman ranking above a count and below a prince. (noun)
• Used as the title for such a nobleman. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "There was nothing for it but to find some snug little marquisate -- "marchese" sounded very well, though one could not be called"
• "But once a "marchese," if she was very charitable, and did something in the way of a public work, the Holy"
• "The marchese (marquis) would know; he's related to most of it."