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mar·che·sa

(mär-kāzə, -kĕzä)

n. pl. mar·che·se (-zā, -zĕ)

1. The wife or widow of a marchese.

2. An Italian noblewoman ranking above a countess and below a princess.

3. Used as the title for such a noblewoman.

[Italian, feminine of marchese, marchese; see MARCHESE.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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