Duchess vs. Countess

Duchessnoun

The wife or widow of a duke.

Duchessnoun

The female ruler of a duchy (where women can reign).

Duchessverb

to court or curry favour for political or business advantage; to flatter obsequiously.

Duchessnoun

The wife or widow of a duke; also, a lady who has the sovereignty of a duchy in her own right.

Duchessnoun

the wife of a duke or a woman holding ducal title in her own right

Countessnoun

The wife of a count or earl.

Countessnoun

A woman holding the rank of count or earl in her own right; a female holder of an earldom.

Countessnoun

The wife of an earl in the British peerage, or of a count in the Continental nobility; also, a lady possessed of the same dignity in her own right. See the Note under Count.

Countessnoun

female equivalent of a count or earl