Word Confusion: Marquee versus Marquis

Posted September 26, 2013 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Revised as of
11 Jan 2023

Pinterest pin for Marquee versus Marquis

Another word confusion that does not appear very often. In truth, it’s more likely for marquis to be confused with respect to its usage and titling in someone’s historical romance. Those of you who enjoy early and mid-twentieth century English mysteries will recognize marquee from the references to it when the county is enjoying a major event on someone’s grounds in those novels. Hey, and maybe a marquis will attend!

You may also want to explore “Mark versus Marque“.

Word Confusions . . .

. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.

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Marquee	Marquis
The NORMAL Theater Film Center is by Ronald (Ron) Douglas Frazier under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Flickr. — A brightly lit movie marquee.	Marquis de Lafayette by Joseph-Désiré Court is in the public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Part of Grammar:
Adjective ¹; Noun ² Plural: marquees Alternate spelling: marquise	Noun Alternative spelling: marquess Feminine version: marquise, marchioness Plural: marquis (male) marquesses (male) marquises (male or female) marchionesses (female)
Adjective: Leading ¹ Preeminent Superlative Headlining Noun: Roof-like projection over the entrance to a theater, hotel, or other building ² A sign over the entrance to a theater that shows the name of the show, movie, play, etc., and the names of the main performers [Chiefly British] A large tent with open sides, especially one for temporary use in outdoor entertainments, receptions, or commercial functions [Mainly U.S. & Canadian slang; modifier] Celebrated or pre-eminent [Slang] Famous and influential Star Stellar	[In some European countries] A nobleman ranking above a count and below a duke
Examples:
Adjective: He’s a marquee baseball player. The team is hoping to get a marquee player. The man is a marquee basketball player. Noun: Did anyone catch what movie was up on the marquee? With this many guests, we’ll need a marquee. She dreamed of seeing her name up on the marquee. That Pasolini was offered these public forums suggests that there was a certain marquee value attached to his name.	The Marquis de Sade has quite the reputation. The Marquis de Lafayette was one of the Frenchmen who joined in the American Revolution. “Three days after his introduction to the family of Madame de Cintre, Newman, coming in toward evening, found upon his table the card of the Marquis de Bellegarde” (James, chapt 12). “By the by, the Marquis of Villarel is here for a time” (Conrad, chapt 2). “‘Bravo, Villefort!’ cried the marquis, ‘excellently well said!'” (Dumas, chapt 6).
History of the Word:
An allusion to the practice of billing the name of an entertainer on the marquee, i.e., awning, over the entrance to a theater. 1690 from marquise is taken as plural and assimilated to -ee	Middle English from the Old French marchis and reinforced by the Old French marquis.

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C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!

Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.

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Resources for Marquee versus Marquis

Some of these links may be affiliate links, and I will earn a small percentage, if you should buy it. It does not affect the price you pay.

Apple Dictionary.com

Conrad, Joseph. The Arrow of Gold. Project Gutenberg: 2009. <https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1083/1083-h/1083-h.htm>. 2017. <https://amzn.to/3W0NLDj>. Ebook.

Dictionary.com: marquee

Dumas, Alexandre. The Count of Monte Cristo. Geo Pierce London: 1846. KTHTK: 2023. <https://amzn.to/3Qxq3gO>. Ebook.

The Free Dictionary: marquee

James, Henry. The American. James R. Osgood and Company, Boston: 1877. General Press: 2022. <https://amzn.to/3k4lmip>. Ebook.

Merriam-Webster: marquee

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Pinterest Photo Credits:

Lafayette Stamp of the marquis was uploaded by User:File Upload Bot (Magnus Manske) and is in the public domain. Grey Gardens at the Walter Kerr Theatre, New York City, 2006, is by Michael J. Owens under the CC BY 2.0 license. Both are via Wikimedia Commons.