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Elizabeth II

Elizabeth II

8 2.7
A woman who was Queen of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland from 1952 to 2022
  • proper noun
: Isabel II
  • Did Elizabeth II ever visit Australia?

Examples

  • Elizabeth II reigned longer than any other British monarch in history.

  • Queen Elizabeth II ruled for over seventy years.

  • Many coins and stamps in the UK feature the likeness of Elizabeth II.

  • The coronation of Elizabeth II was watched by millions worldwide.

  • Queen Elizabeth II was the longest-reigning monarch in British history.

  • During her reign, Elizabeth II played a vital role in modernizing the monarchy.

  • The funeral of Elizabeth II attracted millions of viewers around the world.

Synonyms

Elizabeth
vsElizabeth II
35 1.4

A woman who was queen of the United Kingdom from 1952 to 2022

is the official name shown with a number for formal contexts

Surface Forms

Morphology

Elizabeth + II

The element 'II' is transparently the Roman numeral for 'the second', so a learner who knows the constituents can infer this refers to 'Elizabeth the Second'. However, identifying the referent as the British queen and the biographical details (reign dates, status) requires specific historical/world knowledge beyond the literal composition, so the full meaning is not wholly derivable from the parts.

Etymology

Elizabeth II is the royal name for a queen that shows she is called Elizabeth and is II, the 'second' with that name. Imagine the earlier, famous Queen Elizabeth I and then a later queen with a small 'II' added to her name. So, the title means 'Elizabeth the second' and refers to the queen who ruled from 1952 to 2022.