Dictionary
la•dy
Pronunciation: (lā'dē), [key]
—n., pl. -dies,
—adj.
—
n.
1. a woman who is refined, polite, and well-spoken:
She may be poor and have little education, but she's a real lady.
2. a woman of high social position or economic class:
She was born a lady and found it hard to adjust to her reduced circumstances.
3. any woman; female (sometimes used in combination):
the lady who answered the phone; a saleslady.
4. (Used in direct address: often offensive in the singular):
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. Lady, out of my way, please.
5. wife:
The ambassador and his lady arrived late.
6. Slang.a female lover or steady companion.
7. (
cap.) (in Great Britain) the proper title of any woman whose husband is higher in rank than baronet or knight, or who is the daughter of a nobleman not lower than an earl (although the title is given by courtesy also to the wives of baronets and knights).
8. a woman who has proprietary rights or authority, as over a manor; female feudal superior. Cf.
lord (def. 4).
9. (
cap.) the Virgin Mary.
10. a woman who is the object of chivalrous devotion.
11. (
usually cap.)
a. an attribute or abstraction personified as a woman; a designation of an allegorical figure as feminine:
Lady Fortune; Lady Virtue.
b. a title prefixed to the name of a goddess:
Lady Venus.
—
adj.
1. Sometimes Offensive.being a lady; female:
a lady reporter.
2. of a lady; ladylike; feminine.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
