baron

From Middle English baroun, from Old French baron, Medieval Latin barō, from Frankish *barō (“servant, man, warrior”), perhaps from Proto-Germanic *barô (“carrier, bearer”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰer- (“to bear”). Cognate with Old High German baro (“human being, man, freeman”), 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, due to the occurrence of a Latin barones (“military official”) as early as the first century (Cornutus, On Persius' Fifth Satire). However, the OED takes this hypothetical Proto-Celtic *bar- (“hero”) to be a figment.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈbæɹən/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

• (General American) enPR: bă'rən
  • (Mary–marry–merry distinction) IPA^(key): /ˈbæɹən/
  • (Mary–marry–merry merger) IPA^(key): /ˈbɛəɹən/
• Rhymes: -æɹən
• Homophone: barren

baron (plural barons, feminine baroness)

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).

   Coordinate terms: don, duke, earl, lord, prince, baronet

3. (by extension) A person of great power in society, especially in business and politics.

   Synonyms: magnate, tycoon; see also Thesaurus:important person

   • c. 1948, George Orwell, Such, Such Were the Joys:

     There were a few exotics among them — some South American boys, sons of Argentine beef barons, one or two Russians, and even a Siamese prince, or someone who was described as a prince.

   • 2013 August 10, Lexington, “Keeping the mighty honest”, in The Economist‎, volume 408, number 8848:

     British journalists shun complete respectability, feeling a duty to be ready to savage the mighty, or rummage through their bins. Elsewhere in Europe, government contracts and subsidies ensure that press barons will only defy the mighty so far.

4. (UK, prison slang) A prisoner who gains power and influence by lending or selling tobacco.
   • 1960, Hugh J. Klare, Anatomy of Prison (page 33)

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

   • 1961, Peter Baker, Time out of life (page 51)

     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.

   • 1980, Leonard Michaels, Christopher Ricks, The State of the Language (page 525)

     In British prisons tobacco still remains the gold standard which is made to back every transaction and promise. The official allowance is barely sufficient for individual smoking needs, but tobacco may expensively be borrowed or bought from a baron, possibly through his runner.

5. A baron of beef, a cut made up of a double sirloin.
   • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “chapter 34”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, OCLC 57395299:

     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. (law, obsolete) A husband.

   Coordinate term: wife

   baron and feme ― husband and wife

• baroness
• baronial
• baronetcy

• "baron n.", Oxford English Dictionary, Second edition, 1989; first published in New English Dictionary, 1885.

• Abron, Barno, Bonar, Borna, NORBA, Nabor, Orban, Rabon, aborn, bonar

Readjustment from earlier baroen through modern French influence, from Middle Dutch baroen, from Old French baron, from Frankish *barō.

• IPA^(key): /baːˈrɔn/

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ba‧ron
• Rhymes: -ɔn

baron m (plural baronnen, diminutive baronnetje n, feminine barones)

1. baron, a specific aristocratic title
2. a magnate, especially a wealthy and influential (industrial) entrepreneur

• barones
• oliebaron
• suikerbaron
• textielbaron

• baronie

• → Indonesian: baron
• → Javanese: ꦧꦫꦺꦴꦤ꧀ (baron)

• IPA^(key): [ˈbaron]
• Rhymes: -aron
• Hyphenation: ba‧ron

baron

1. accusative singular of baro

From Middle French baron, from Old French baron, from or corresponding to Late Latin or Medieval Latin barō, barōnem, possibly from Frankish *baro (“freeman”) or of other Germanic origin; alternatively, of ultimately Celtic origin.

• IPA^(key): /ba.ʁɔ̃/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔ̃

baron m (plural barons, feminine baronne)

1. (dated) baron, lord, noble landowner

• “baron”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

• borna

From Dutch baron, from Middle Dutch baroen, from Old French baron, from Frankish *barō.

• IPA^(key): [ˈbarɔn]
• Hyphenation: ba‧ron

baron (first-person possessive baronku, second-person possessive baronmu, third-person possessive baronnya)

1. baron: the male ruler of a barony; a title for European noblemen.

• “baron” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Language Development and Fostering Agency — Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic Indonesia, 2016.

baru +‎ -an

baron (krama ngoko baron)

1. young plant, especially coffee

From Dutch baron (“baron”), from Middle Dutch baroen, from Old French baron, from Frankish *barō.

baron (krama ngoko baron)

1. a title for European noblemen

• "baron" in W. J. S. Poerwadarminta, Bausastra Jawa. J. B. Wolters' Uitgevers-Maatschappij N. V. Groningen, Batavia, 1939

baron

1. Alternative form of bareyne

baron

1. Alternative form of baroun

From Old French baron.

baron m (plural barons)

1. baron (nobleman)

• French: baron

baron m (plural barons)

1. Alternative form of bâron

From Old Norse barún, from Old French baron, from Frankish *barō.

baron m (definite singular baronen, indefinite plural baroner, definite plural baronene)

1. a baron

• baronesse

• “baron” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

From Old Norse barún, from Old French baron, from Frankish *barō.

baron m (definite singular baronen, indefinite plural baronar, definite plural baronane)

1. a baron

• baronesse

• “baron” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

From Proto-Germanic *bazōną.

baron

1. to reveal, to make public

This verb needs an inflection-table template.

• Middle Dutch: bāren
  • Dutch: baren

• “baron”, in Oudnederlands Woordenboek, 2012

• baroun, barun, ber

From or corresponding to Medieval Latin bārō, possibly from Frankish *barō (“freeman”) or of other Germanic origin; alternatively, ultimately of Celtic origin. The nominative form ber corresponds to the nominative barō.

baron m (oblique plural barons, nominative singular ber, nominative plural baron)

1. lord, baron (title of nobility)
2. (by extension) husband

• (husband): seignor, mari

• Middle French: barom
  • French: baron (historical)
    • Haitian Creole: baron
• Norman: bâron
• Picard: barôn
• Walloon: baron
• → Middle Armenian: պարոն (paron)
  • Armenian: պարոն (paron)
• → Middle English: baroun, baron, barone, baroon, barown, barowne, barun, beron
  • English: baron
  • Scots: baron
• → Middle Low German: barōn
• → Middle Dutch: baroen
  • Dutch: baron (readjustment)
• → Middle High German: barūn, barōne
  • German: Baron (see there for further descendants)
• → Old Norse: barún
  • Icelandic: barón
  • Norwegian: baron
  • Swedish: baron
  • Danish: baron
• → Middle Irish: barún
  • Irish: barún

Borrowed from French baron, from Middle French baron, from Old French baron, from or corresponding to Late Latin or Medieval Latin barō, barōnem, probably ultimately of Proto-Germanic origin.

• IPA^(key): /ˈba.rɔn/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -arɔn
• Syllabification: ba‧ron

baron m pers (diminutive baronek, feminine baronessa)

1. (historical) baron, lord (the male ruler of a barony)

baron m pers

1. (figuratively) baron, lord (a person of great power in society, especially in business and politics)

   Synonym: potentat

• baron in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• baron in Polish dictionaries at PWN

From French baron.

baron m (plural baroni)

1. baron

From Old French baron.

• IPA^(key): /bǎroːn/
• Hyphenation: ba‧ron

bàrōn m (Cyrillic spelling ба̀ро̄н)

1. baron (title of nobility)

From Old French baron.

• Audio

  (file)

baron c (feminine: baronessa)

1. a baron, a ruler of a barony

• banor, bonar, borna, nabor

Borrowed from Spanish barón.

• Hyphenation: ba‧ron
• IPA^(key): /baˈɾon/, [bɐˈɾon]

barón

1. baron (title of nobility)