mistress English · revision 15404

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing|attested=probably before 1300|origins=la magister}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈmɪs.tɹɪs/^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|maistresse]], [[bor|fro|maistresse]], the feminine of [[m|fro|maistre|t=master]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986) from [[la|magister|t=chief, director, teacher]] (see [[master]]).^(Etymonline) Forms in mis-, due to light stress, are recorded from the 15th century (compare [[mister]]).^(Hoad 1986)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A woman at the head of a household: probably before 1300, in ''Sir Tristrem'', in Barnhart;^(Barnhart 1988) a female teacher or governess about 1300 in Etymonline, about 1320 in the OED.^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==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.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) A woman who employs others is from the early 15th century,^(Etymonline)^(OED 1989) and one who has mastered an art from the mid-15th.^(Etymonline) A woman beloved and courted, who commands a lover's heart, is from about 1500,^(Etymonline) 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.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) The courtesy title gave rise to [[Mrs]], [[miss]] and [[missis]].^(Hoad 1986)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * probably before 1300 – head of a household.^(Barnhart 1988)

+ * c. 1320 – a governess.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1426 – an employer.^(OED 1989)

+ * c. 1500 – a beloved woman.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1601 – a kept woman.^(Barnhart 1988)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A woman with a long-term sexual relationship with a man who is married to someone else.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A woman in a position of authority or control, as the head of a household or the owner of an animal.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # A woman with control over something: ''mistress of her own destiny''.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)

+ # ''(chiefly British)'' A female schoolteacher.^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[mistressed]]

+ * [[mistress-ship]]

+ * [[Mrs]]

+ * [[Miss]]

+ * [[Ms]]

+ * [[concertmistress]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[master]]

+ * [[missis]]

+ * [[maestro]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}