prince

UK: 'prince', 'Prince': /ˈprɪns/ US: /prɪns/ ,(prins)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

prince /prɪns/   n. [countable]

1. Government a male member of a royal family who is not ruling:
   one of seven princes waiting for the king to die.
   [as part of a title, before a name] :
   Prince Ladislav.
2. Government (in Great Britain) a son of the king or queen, or a son of the son of a king or queen.
3. Government the ruler of a small state or country, as Monaco.
4. one who is the best example in its class of some noun mentioned:
   a merchant prince.
5. an admirable person:
   He was a real prince: showing her the sights and driving her home.

See -prim-.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

prince  (prins), n. 

1. Government a nonreigning male member of a royal family.
2. Government [Hist.] a sovereign or monarch;
   king.
3. Government (in Great Britain) a son or grandson (if the child of a son) of a king or queen.
4. Government the English equivalent of any of various titles of nobility in other countries.
5. Government a holder of such a title.
6. Government the ruler of a small state, as one actually or nominally subordinate to a suzerain:
   Monaco is ruled by a prince.
7. a person or thing that is chief or preeminent in any class, group, etc.:
   a merchant prince.
8. a person possessing admirably fine and genial characteristics:
   He is a prince of a man.

• Latin prīncip- (stem of prīnceps) first, principal (adjective, adjectival), principal person, leader (noun, nominal), equivalent. to prīn- for prīmus prime + -cep- (combining form of capere to take) + -s nominative singular ending
• Old French
• Middle English 1175–1225

prince′less, adj. 
prince′ship, n. 

Prince  (prins), n. 

1. Biographical Harold S., born 1928, U.S. stage director and producer.
2. a male given name.

Prince, The, (Italian, Il Principe),

1. Government a treatise on statecraft (1513) by Niccolò Machiavelli.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

prince / prɪns/ noun

1. (in Britain) a son of the sovereign or of one of the sovereign's sons
2. a nonreigning male member of a sovereign family
3. the monarch of a small territory, such as Monaco, usually called a principality, that was at some time subordinate to an emperor or king
4. any sovereign; monarch
5. a nobleman in various countries, such as Italy and Germany
6. an outstanding member of a specified group: a merchant prince

Etymology: 13th Century: via Old French from Latin princeps first man, ruler, chief

ˈprinceˌlike adjective

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

Al•bert  (al′bərt), n. 

1. Biographical Carl (Bert), born 1908, U.S. politician: Speaker of the House 1971–77.
2. Prince (Albert Francis Charles Augustus Emanuel, Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha), 1819–61, consort of Queen Victoria.
3. Lake. Also called Al′bert Nyan′za. a lake in central Africa, between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo: a source of the Nile. 100 mi. (160 km) long;
   2061 sq. mi. (5338 sq. km);
   2030 ft. (619 m) above sea level.
4. a male given name: from Old High German words meaning "noble'' and "bright.''

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

Prince / prɪns/ noun

1. full name Prince Rogers Nelson. 1958–2016, US rock singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. His albums include Dirty Mind (1981), Purple Rain (1984), Parade (1986), and Sign o' the Times (1987)