old maid

SEE SYNONYMS FOR old maid ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Disparaging and Offensive. an elderly or confirmed spinster.

a fussy, timid, prudish person.

Cards.

a simple game, played with a deck having one card removed, in which the players draw from one another to match pairs and the one holding an odd queen at the end loses.
the loser of such a game.

Origin of old maid

First recorded in 1520–30

usage note for old maid

The meaning “a spinster” is used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting. It puts emphasis on the woman’s advanced age and assumed inability to ever attract a husband. See also spinster.

Words nearby old maid

old-line, old-line party, Old Line State, Old Low Franconian, Old Low German, old maid, old-maidish, old man, old-man-and-woman, old-man cactus, Old Man of the Sea

Dictionary.com UnabridgedBased on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for old maid

He had seen one like it before, and guessed that it came as a gift from the old-maid cousins at the farm.
Despair's Last Journey|David Christie Murray
They are your Voices, Lucy; they are your babies grown-up who are talking to you even here in my old-maid house.'
Atlantic Classics, Second Series|Henry C. Merwin
You would as soon hear a 'No' from an old-maid as from the House of Commons.
The Great Events by Famous Historians, v. 13|Various
An old-maid being at a loss for a pin-cushion, made use of an onion for the purpose.
The New Pun Book|Thomas A. Brown and Thomas Joseph Carey

So my prim, old-maid sister has turned butterfly since she went gadding?
Ainslee's, Vol. 15, No. 6, July 1905|Various

British Dictionary definitions for old maid

old maid

noun

a woman regarded as unlikely ever to marry; spinster

informal a prim, fastidious, or excessively cautious person

a card game using a pack from which one card has been removed, in which players try to avoid holding the unpaired card at the end of the game

Derived forms of old maid

old-maidish, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

单词	old maid
释义	old maid SEE SYNONYMS FOR old maid ON THESAURUS.COM noun Disparaging and Offensive. an elderly or confirmed spinster. a fussy, timid, prudish person. Cards. a simple game, played with a deck having one card removed, in which the players draw from one another to match pairs and the one holding an odd queen at the end loses. the loser of such a game. Origin of old maid First recorded in 1520–30 usage note for old maid The meaning “a spinster” is used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting. It puts emphasis on the woman’s advanced age and assumed inability to ever attract a husband. See also spinster. Words nearby old maid old-line, old-line party, Old Line State, Old Low Franconian, Old Low German, old maid, old-maidish, old man, old-man-and-woman, old-man cactus, Old Man of the Sea Dictionary.com UnabridgedBased on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020 Example sentences from the Web for old maid He had seen one like it before, and guessed that it came as a gift from the old-maid cousins at the farm. Despair's Last Journey\|David Christie Murray They are your Voices, Lucy; they are your babies grown-up who are talking to you even here in my old-maid house.' Atlantic Classics, Second Series\|Henry C. Merwin You would as soon hear a 'No' from an old-maid as from the House of Commons. The Great Events by Famous Historians, v. 13\|Various An old-maid being at a loss for a pin-cushion, made use of an onion for the purpose. The New Pun Book\|Thomas A. Brown and Thomas Joseph Carey So my prim, old-maid sister has turned butterfly since she went gadding? Ainslee's, Vol. 15, No. 6, July 1905\|Various British Dictionary definitions for old maid old maid noun a woman regarded as unlikely ever to marry; spinster informal a prim, fastidious, or excessively cautious person a card game using a pack from which one card has been removed, in which players try to avoid holding the unpaired card at the end of the game Derived forms of old maid old-maidish, adjective Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Words related to old maid bachelor girl, fuddy-duddy, goody-goody, maiden, prig, prude, spinster
随便看	workbasket workbench workboat workbook work both sides of the street workbox work camp workday worked worked-up worked up, be worker worker director worker participation worker-priest workers' compensation workers' compensation insurance workers' cooperative work ethic work expands to fill the time available for its completion workfare work farm workflow workfolk work force

old maid

noun

Origin of old maid

usage note for old maid

Words nearby old maid

Example sentences from the Web for old maid

British Dictionary definitions for old maid

noun

Derived forms of old maid

Words related to old maid