Lady
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ˈleɪdi/
- Rhymes: -eɪdi
- Hyphenation: la + dy
Origin
From Middle English lady, laddy, lafdi, lavedi, from Old English hlÇ£fdÄ«Ä¡e ("mistress of a household, wife of a lord, lady", literally bread-kneader), from hlÄf ("bread") + dÄ«Ä¡e ("maid"), related to Old English dǣġe ("maker of dough"). Compare also lord. More at loaf, dairy, dough.
Noun
lady
(plural ladies)- (historical) The mistress of a household.
- Wycliffe Bible (Genesis) Chapter 16, "he said to her, From whence comest thou Hagar, the servantess of Sarai (Sarai’s slave-girl), and whither goest thou? Which answered, I flee from the face of Sarai, my lady.â€
- A woman of breeding or higher class, a woman of authority.
- 1963, Margery Allingham, The China Governess Chapter 6, ‘… I remember a lady coming to inspect St. Mary's Home where I was brought up and seeing us all in our lovely Elizabethan uniforms we were so proud of, and bursting into tears all over us because “it was wicked to dress us like charity childrenâ€. …’.
- "I would like the dining room to be fully set by tonight; would you do so?" "Yes, my lady".
- The feminine of lord.
- Lowelllord or lady of high degree
- ShakespeareOf all these bounds, even from this line to this, ...
We make thee lady. - A title for someone married to a lord.
- A title for somebody married to a gentleman.
- A title that can be used instead of the formal terms of marchioness, countess, viscountess, or baroness.
- (polite or used by children) A woman: an adult female human.Please direct this lady to the soft furnishings department.
- (in the plural) A polite reference or form of address to women.
- 1898, Winston Churchill, The Celebrity Chapter 4, The Celebrity, by arts unknown, induced Mrs. Judge Short and two other ladies to call at Mohair on an afternoon when Mr. Cooke was trying a trotter on the track. The three returned wondering and charmed with Mrs. Cooke; they were sure she had had no hand in the furnishing of that atrocious house.
- Ladies and gentlemen, it is a pleasure to be here today. Follow me, ladies!
- (slang) Used to address a female.Hey, lady, move your car!
- (ladies'
or ladies) Toilets intended for use by women. - (familiar) A wife or girlfriend; a sweetheart.
- William Shakespeare, Romeo and JulietBut soft, what light through yonder window breaks...? It is my lady, O it is my love!
- A woman to whom the particular homage of a knight was paid; a woman to whom one is devoted or bound.
- WallerThe soldier here his wasted store supplies,
And takes new valour from his lady's eyes. - (slang) A queen (the playing card).
- (dated, attributive, with a professional title) Who is a woman.A lady doctor.
- (Wicca) Alternative form of Lady.
- The triturating apparatus in the stomach of a lobster, consisting of calcareous plates; so called from a fancied resemblance to a seated female figure.