Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Suzerain \Su"ze*rain\, n. [F., formed fr. sus above, L. susum,
   sursum (fr. sub under + versum, p. p. of vertere to turn),
   after the analogy of souverain, E. sovereign. See {Sub-}, and
   {Verse}.]
   A superior lord, to whom fealty is due; a feudal lord; a lord
   paramount.

Source : WordNet®

suzerain
     n : a state exercising a degree of dominion over a dependent
         state especially in its foreign affairs