: a member of the English gentry ranking below a knight
2
: a candidate for knighthood serving as shield bearer and attendant to a knight
3
—used as a title of courtesy often by attorneys usually placed in its abbreviated form after the surname
John R. Smith, Esq.
4
archaic: a landed proprietor
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the WebThese men were called squires for most of the Middle Ages, but esquire began to appear in the 15th century. Melissa Mohr, The Christian Science Monitor, 27 June 2022
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, from Anglo-French esquier squire, from Late Latin scutarius, from Latin scutum shield; akin to Old Irish sciath shield