• enPR: mĭsʹtrĭs, IPA: /ˈmɪstɹɪs/

mistress (plural mistresses)

1. A woman, specifically one with great control, authority or ownership

   Synonyms: boss, head, leader

   (male equivalent) master

   She was the mistress of the estate-mansion, and owned the horses.

2. A female teacher

   Synonyms: schoolmarm

   (male equivalent) master

   games mistress

3. The other woman in an extramarital relationship, generally including sexual relations

   Synonyms: bit on the side, fancy woman, comaré, goomah, Thesaurus:mistress

   Antonyms: cicisbeo, fancy man

4. A dominatrix

   (male equivalent) master

   • 2006, Amelia May Kingston, The Triumph of Hope (page 376)

     As part of BDSM play they can enhance the domineering tread of a mistress or hobble the steps of a slave.

5. A woman well skilled in anything, or having the mastery over it

   • A letter desires all young wives to make themselves mistresses of Wingate's Arithmetic.

6. a woman regarded with love and devotion; a sweetheart
7. (Scotland) A married woman; a wife
   • 1815 February 23, [Walter Scott], Guy Mannering; or, The Astrologer. [...] In Three Volumes, volume (please specify ), Edinburgh: Printed by James Ballantyne and Co. for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, […]; and Archibald Constable and Co., […], OCLC 742335644 ↗:

8. (obsolete) The jack in the game of bowls
9. A female companion to a master a man with control, authority or ownership
10. feminine equivalent of master#English|master
11. feminine equivalent of mister#English|mister

• French: maîtresse
• German: Frau, Meisterin, Herrscherin
• Italian: signora, padrona
• Portuguese: senhora
• Russian: госпожа́

• French: maîtresse
• Italian: maestra
• Portuguese: professora
• Spanish: maestra

• French: maîtresse, amante
• German: Mätresse, Liebhaberin
• Italian: amante
• Portuguese: amante
• Russian: любо́вница
• Spanish: querida, amante, barragana, manceba

• German: Domina
• Italian: dominatrice, padrona
• Portuguese: dominatriz
• Russian: хозя́йка
• Spanish: ama

mistress (mistresses, present participle mistressing; past and past participle mistressed)

1. (transitive, rare) Of a woman: to master; to learn or develop to a high degree of proficiency.
2. (intransitive) To act or take the role of a mistress.

mistress (plural mistresses)

1. (archaic) Used as the title of a married woman before her name. Now used only in the abbreviated form Mrs.
   • 1855 December – 1857 June​, Charles Dickens, “The Dreams of Mrs. Flintwinch Thicken”, in Little Dorrit, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1857, OCLC 83401042 ↗, book the second (Riches), page 408 ↗:

     The sound of Mistress Affery cautiously chaining the door before she opened it, caused them both to look that way.