maiden

English

/ˈmeɪdən/

noun
Definitions
  • (now) A girl or an unmarried young woman.
  • A female virgin.
  • (obsolete) A man with no experience of sex, especially because of deliberate abstention.
  • A maidservant.
  • A clothes maiden.
  • (now) An unmarried woman, especially an older woman.
  • (horse racing) A racehorse without any victory, i.e. one having a "virgin record".
  • (horse racing) A horse race in which all starters are maidens.
  • (historical) A Scottish counterpart of the guillotine.
  • (cricket) A maiden over.
  • (obsolete) A machine for washing linen.
  • (Wicca) (alternative form of) Maiden

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English maiden inherited from Old English mæġden (virgin, maiden, maid, girl, servant) derived from *magaþ derived from Proto-Germanic *magaþs (virgin, maid, maiden, girl) affix from English maid.

Origin

English

maid

Gloss

Timeline

Distribution of cognates by language

Geogrpahic distribution of cognates

Cognates and derived terms