lady

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈleɪ.di/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English lavedi, lafdi, ladi,^[2][3][4] inherited from Old English hlǣfdīġe (“mistress of a household, wife of a lord”),^[2][3] apparently literally “one who kneads bread”,^[2][5] a compound of hlāf (“bread”), the source of loaf,^[2][3] and -dīġe, from a Germanic base meaning “to knead”,^[6][7] related to Old English dǣġe “kneader of bread, maid”, the first part of dairy, and to dough.^[2][3][8] The male counterpart is lord, Old English hlāfweard “keeper of bread”.^[5][2] The Century Dictionary found this etymology improbable and the OED not very plausible in sense, but no one has a better explanation.^[2] The word is peculiar to English,^[8] and is not found elsewhere except as a borrowing from English.^[2] The medial -f- disappeared in the 14th century.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

Old English hlǣfdige is found about 750 in Cynewulf's Elene,^[3] and hlāfdīe, “mistress of a household”, before 830;^[3] the OED's first example of the female head of a household is from about 825.^[9]

Semantic evolution

In Anglo-Saxon times a lady was a powerful woman who ruled a household and supplied its staple food.^[5] She was also a woman to whom obedience or feudal homage was due, the wife of a lord, and, from Old English times, the Virgin Mary.^[7][9] From the genitive hlǣfdigan, which in Middle English merged with the nominative, lady- often stands for “(Our) Lady's”, as in ladybug and Lady Day, the feast of the Annunciation (late 13th century).^[2][8] A woman of superior position in society is from about 1200,^[2][9] and a woman chosen as the object of chivalrous love from the early 14th century.^[2] Ladylike is from the 1580s,^[2] but a woman whose manners befit high rank is from 1861,^[2] and lady as an address to any woman is common from the 1890s.^[2] Ladies' man is by the 1690s.^[2] Ladies who lunch comes from a 1970 song by Stephen Sondheim.^[5]

Timeline

• c. 750 – Old English hlǣfdige.^[3]
• c. 825 – female head of a household.^[9]
• before 900 – the Virgin Mary.^[9]
• c. 1200 – a woman of high position.^[2]
• late 13th century – Lady Day.^[2]
• early 14th century – object of chivalrous love.^[2]
• 1580s – ladylike.^[2]
• 1600 – verb, lady it.^[9]
• 1861 – a refined woman.^[2]
• 1890s – an address to any woman.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A woman, especially when spoken of politely.
2. A well-mannered and considerate woman; the female counterpart of a gentleman.
3. A woman of high social position.
4. (British) The title of a peeress or of the wife of a knight.
5. (archaic) A woman who is the head of a household, or to whom homage is due.
6. Our Lady: The Virgin Mary.
7. ladies: A women's toilet.

Word family

• ladyhood
• ladyish
• ladyishly
• ladyishness
• ladyless

Related words

• lord
• loaf
• dough
• dairy
• ladybug
• ladybird
• ladyship

Usage notes

Lady is properly used as a parallel to gentleman, to stress expected standards of courtesy;^[10] as a plain synonym for woman it can sound condescending, and many people object to it in phrases such as lady doctor.^[10]

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c d e f g Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
4. ^ Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. ^ a b c d Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
6. ^ Soanes, Catherine; Stevenson, Angus, eds. (2004), Concise Oxford English Dictionary, 11th ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
7. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
8. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
9. ^ a b c d e f Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
10. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin