• Madam

    Pronunciation

    • IPA: /ˈmæd.É™m/

    Origin

    From Old French madame, from ma ‘my’ + dame ‘lady’, from post-classical Latin mea domina.

    Noun

    madam

    (plural madams or mesdames)
    1. A polite form of address for a woman or lady.''Mrs Grey wondered if the outfit she was trying on made her look fat. The sales assistant just said, “It suits you, madam”.''Later, Mrs Grey was sitting in her favourite tea shop. “Would madam like the usual cream cakes and patisserie with her tea?” the waitress asked.
    2. The mistress of a household.
    3. (colloquial) A conceited or quarrelsome girl.''Selina kept pushing and shoving during musical chairs. The nursery school teacher said she was a bad-tempered little madam.
    4. (slang) A woman who runs a brothel.After she grew too old to work as a prostitute, she became a madam.

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