n.
Pronunciation: ' es- ˌ kw ī (- ə )r, is- '
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French esquier squire, from Late Latin scutarius, from Latin scutum shield; akin to Old Irish sciath shield
Date: 15th century
1 : 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 usually placed in its abbreviated form after the surname <John R. Smith, Esq. >
4 archaic : a landed proprietor