/ fiːf; NAmE / (also fief·dom / ˈfiːfdəm/) noun
1.
( law ) ( old use ) an area of land, especially a rented area for which the payment is work, not money
2.
an area or a situation in which sb has control or influence :
She considers the office as her own private fiefdom.
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WORD ORIGIN
early 17th cent.: from French , from medieval Latin feodum , feudum , ultimately of Germanic origin.