# lady

Pronunciation: say "LAY-dee" /ˈleɪdi/

## Noun

1. A woman; often used as a polite or respectful word for any woman.
   - Simple: A woman. People often say lady to be polite instead of woman.
   - _The lady at the front desk answered all of our questions._
   - _Two ladies sat reading in the corner of the café._
2. Being a woman; used attributively before a noun to indicate female sex.
   - Simple: Used before another word to show that the person is a woman.
   - _A lady novelist delivered the keynote address at the festival._
   - _They requested a lady attendant for the fitting room._
3. A woman of high social class or refined upbringing, or one who holds authority.
   - Simple: A woman who comes from an important family or who is in charge of others.
   - _Born into wealth, she was every inch a lady._
   - _In the novel, the ladies of the county would not receive the farmer's daughter in their drawing rooms._
4. A title for a woman of rank: a peeress below duchess, the wife or widow of a knight, baronet or lord, or the daughter of a duke, marquess or earl.
   - Simple: A title used before the name of a woman of high rank or the wife of a knight or lord.
   - _After the wedding, she was known throughout the county as Lady Whitmore._
   - _Lady Carlisle accompanied her husband to the opening ceremony._
5. An informal or brusque way of addressing a woman, especially a stranger. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A casual way to call out to a woman you do not know.
   - _Lady, you can't park your car here during rush hour._
   - _Watch it, lady, that's my foot you're standing on!_
6. The woman someone is married to or going out with; a sweetheart. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: A person's wife or girlfriend.
   - _He introduced his lady to all of his old college friends._
   - _The old sailor wrote long letters to his lady back home._
7. A woman with authority over a household or estate; the female counterpart of lord.
   - Simple: A woman who is in charge of a home or estate, like a lord is.
   - _On her father's death she became the lady of the estate._
   - _Several ladies governed their territories as fully as any lord._
9. A woman to whom a knight pledged his service and homage, or more broadly one to whom a person is devoted.
   - Simple: A woman a knight has promised to serve and protect, or someone a person loves and is loyal to.
   - _The young squire dedicated every victory to his lady._
   - _Minstrels sang of knights who crossed kingdoms for their ladies._
10. A playful slang term for a woman's breast. *(slang)*
   - Simple: An informal, playful word for a woman's breast.
   - _The low neckline barely covered her ladies._
   - _She laughed and said the new sports bra kept the ladies firmly in place._
11. The queen in a pack of playing cards or in chess. *(slang)*
   - Simple: An informal name for the queen in cards or in chess.
   - _Holding a pair of ladies, she pushed half her chips into the middle of the table and waited for him to fold._
   - _On the street corner, a hustler shuffled three cards and dared passersby to find the lady._
12. A woman whose conduct is courteous, dignified and thoughtful toward others, regardless of her class or upbringing.
   - Simple: A woman who has good manners and treats others with care and respect, whatever her background.
   - _She never raised her voice or spoke ill of anyone; she was a lady through and through._
   - _She never went to finishing school, but she remembered every nurse's name and thanked every porter, and everyone on the ward agreed she was a real lady._
13. In Christian use, a reverent title for Mary, mother of Jesus, found especially in the form Our Lady.
   - Simple: A name that Christians use to honor Mary, the mother of Jesus, often as Our Lady.
   - _The cathedral's oldest window shows Our Lady holding the infant Jesus._
   - _The choir closed the service with an old hymn to Our Lady._
8. A public toilet set aside for women, usually called the ladies. *(UK)*
   - Simple: A public toilet for women.
   - _She's gone to the ladies; she'll be back in a minute._
   - _There was a long queue for the ladies at the interval._

## Other meanings

- (noun) Alternative form of Lady: in Wicca and other Neopagan religions, the Goddess, often honored alongside the Lord.
- (verb) To address a woman using the word or title "lady".
- (noun) A five-pound banknote, called this because 'Lady Godiva' rhymes with 'fiver.'
- (noun) The gastric mill of a lobster, the hard, chalky stomach plates that grind food, fancied to resemble a seated woman.

## Origin

The Old English word hlǣfdīġe meant "mistress of a household" or "wife of a lord". It was built from hlāf ("bread, loaf") and dīġe ("kneader"), so it literally meant "bread-kneader", and it became Middle English lady. The word is connected with lord but has no link to lad.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/lady (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).