overlord
A ruler of other rulers.
Example
“The various tribal chieftains met each spring to elect an overlord that would lead them in time of war.”
Other meanings
A feudal lord directly owed rent or personal service by a tenant of subinfeudated land, a tenant's liege lord.
Related words
- superoverlord
- benevolent overlord
- overlordship
Word history
From Middle English "oferrlaferrd".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “overlord” on Wiktionary, by its contributors, published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.