mistress

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈmɪs.tɹɪs/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English maistresse, borrowed from Old French maistresse, the feminine of maistre (“master”),^[2][3][4] from Latin magister (“chief, director, teacher”) (see master).^[3] Forms in mis-, due to light stress, are recorded from the 15th century (compare mister).^[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

A woman at the head of a household: probably before 1300, in Sir Tristrem, in Barnhart;^[2] a female teacher or governess about 1300 in Etymonline, about 1320 in the OED.^[3][5]

Semantic evolution

In Middle English mistress had many senses: a woman at the head of a household, a ruler or queen, a goddess, a beloved woman, a governess, an expert in a skill, and a polite form of address.^[2][3] A woman who employs others is from the early 15th century,^[3][5] and one who has mastered an art from the mid-15th.^[3] A woman beloved and courted, who commands a lover's heart, is from about 1500,^[3] and the pejorative sense, a woman in a lasting sexual relationship with a married man, is attested in 1601 in Barnhart, the early 15th century in Etymonline.^[2][3] The courtesy title gave rise to Mrs, miss and missis.^[4][6]

Timeline

• probably before 1300 – head of a household.^[2]
• c. 1320 – a governess.^[5]
• 1426 – an employer.^[5]
• c. 1500 – a beloved woman.^[3]
• 1601 – a kept woman.^[2]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A woman with a long-term sexual relationship with a man who is married to someone else.
2. A woman in a position of authority or control, as the head of a household or the owner of an animal.
3. A woman with control over something: mistress of her own destiny.
4. (chiefly British) A female schoolteacher.

Word family

• mistressed
• mistress-ship
• Mrs
• Miss
• Ms
• concertmistress

Related words

• master
• missis
• maestro

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b c Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins