knighthood

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   the rank, title, or dignity of a knight, especially an honor conferred by a British monarch

   The scientist received a knighthood for services to medicine.

2. 2
   noun

   knights considered collectively; historical

   The king summoned the knighthood of the realm to support the campaign.

3. 3
   noun

   the qualities, duties, or ideals associated with being a knight; archaic

   The romance treats courage and loyalty as the highest virtues of knighthood.

Common collocations

• medieval knighthood Adjective + noun

From Middle English knyghthode and Old English cnihthad, literally the state or rank of a cniht, formed from knight + -hood. Old English cniht first meant 'boy' or 'servant' before developing the military and noble sense; -hood denotes a state, rank, or body.

Topics

External links

• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary
• Google Images