spinster
Pronunciation Noun
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Pronunciation Noun
spinster (plural spinsters)
- (sometimes, derogatory) A woman who has never been married, especially one past the typical marrying age according to social traditions.
- Synonyms: old maid
- If a gentlewoman be termed a spinster, she may abate the writ.
- One who spins (puts a spin on) a political media story so as to give something a favorable or advantageous appearance; a spin doctor, spin merchant or spin master.
- (obsolete) Someone whose occupation was spinning thread.
- c. 1601, William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, act II, scene IV:
- The spinsters and the knitters in the sun.
- c. 1601, William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, act II, scene IV:
- (obsolete) A woman of evil life and character; so called from being forced to spin in a house of correction.
- (rare) A spider; an insect (such as a silkworm) which spins thread.
- French: vieille fille
- German: alte Jungfer, Junggesellin, unverheiratetes Fräulein, unverheiratete Frau
- Italian: zitella
- Portuguese: solteira, solteirona, encalhada
- Russian: ста́рая де́ва
- Spanish: solterona, quedada
- Portuguese: fiadeiro, fiadeira
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.004