countess
count·ess [countess countesses] BrE [ˈkaʊntəs] NAmE [ˈkaʊntəs] BrE [ˈkaʊntes] NAmE [ˈkaʊntes] noun
1. a woman who has the rank of a ↑count or an ↑earl
2. the wife of a ↑count or an ↑earl
•the Earl and Countess of Rosebery
Word Origin:
Middle English: from Old French contesse, from late Latin comitissa, feminine of comes, comit- ‘companion, overseer, attendant’ (in late Latin ‘person holding a state office’), from com- ‘together with’ + it- ‘gone’ (from the verb ire ‘go’).
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