spinster
Part of speech: noun
Morphological type: derivation
Etymology: From Middle English spynnestere (“woman who spins fibre”), from c. 1350; equivalent to spin + -ster. The semantic development is from a historical notion of unmarried women spinning thread for a living.
Base: spin
Affixes: -ster
Inflected forms:
form: spinsters
pos: noun
tags: plural
Senses:
gloss: A woman who has never been married, especially one past the typical marrying age according to social traditions.
pos: noun
tags: derogatory
sometimes
examples: If […] a woman be named spinster, she may abate […]the same [writ].
Iola Boylen is Mama's longtime friend and neighbor, a spinster who lives with her never-seen domineering mother.
gloss: One who spins (puts a spin on) a political media story so as to give something a favorable or advantageous appearance; a spin doctor, spin merchant or spinmeister.
pos: noun
gloss: Someone whose occupation was spinning thread.
pos: noun
tags: obsolete
examples: The spinsters and the knitters in the sun.
gloss: A woman of evil life and character; so called from being forced to spin in a house of correction.
pos: noun
tags: obsolete
gloss: A spider; an insect (such as a silkworm) which spins thread.
pos: noun
tags: dialectal
rare
Related words: bachelor
bachelorette
divorcee
thornback
widow
Derived words: inspin
spinsterdom
spinsterhood
spinsterish
spinsterism
spinsterlike
spinsterly
spinstership
spinstress
Translations:
lang: Afrikaans
word: oujongnooi
lang: Arabic
word: عَانِس
roman: ʕānis
lang: Armenian
word: տանը մնացած
roman: tanə mnacʻac
lang: Armenian
word: պառաված օրիորդ
roman: paṙavac ōriord
lang: Azerbaijani
word: qoca qız
lang: Azerbaijani
word: qarımış qız
lang: Bashkir
word: ҡарт ҡыҙ
roman: qart qıź
lang: Basque
word: neskazahar
lang: Belarusian
word: стара́я дзе́ва
roman: starája dzjéva
lang: Bulgarian
word: ста́ра мо́ма
roman: stára móma
lang: Burmese
word: အပျိုကြီး
roman: a.pyui-kri:
lang: Catalan
word: conca
lang: Chechen
word: ойна
roman: ojna
lang: Chinese Mandarin
word: 老處女 /老处女
roman: lǎochǔnǚ
lang: Chinese Mandarin
word: 剩女
roman: shèngnǚ
lang: Czech
word: stará panna
lang: Danish
word: pebermø
lang: Dutch
word: oude vrijster
lang: Dutch
word: ongehuwde vrouw
lang: Estonian
word: vanatüdruk
lang: Finnish
word: vanhapiika
lang: French
word: vieille fille
lang: Galician
word: poula
lang: Galician
word: solteirona
lang: Georgian
word: შინაბერა
roman: šinabera
lang: German
word: alte Jungfer
lang: German
word: Junggesellin
lang: German
word: unverheiratete Frau
lang: German
word: älteres Fräulein
lang: Greek
word: γεροντοκόρη
roman: gerontokóri
lang: Hebrew
word: רַוָּקָה זְקֵנָה
roman: ravaká z'kená
lang: Hebrew
word: בְּתוּלָה זְקֵנָה
roman: betulá z'kená
lang: Hindi
word: बूढ़ी कुँवारी
roman: būṛhī kũvārī
lang: Hungarian
word: vénkisasszony
lang: Hungarian
word: aggszűz
lang: Hungarian
word: vénlány
lang: Icelandic
word: piparmey
lang: Ido
word: damzelo
lang: Indonesian
word: perawan tua
lang: Ingrian
word: vanhatyttö
lang: Irish
word: bean shingil
lang: Irish
word: puisbhean
lang: Italian
word: zitella
lang: Japanese
word: オールドミス
roman: ōrudo misu
lang: Japanese
word: 売れ残り
roman: urenokori
lang: Japanese
word: ハイミス
roman: haimisu
lang: Kazakh
word: кәрі қыз
roman: kärı qyz
lang: Khmer
word: ព្រៅ
roman: prɨw
lang: Khmer
word: សាវកែ
roman: saawkae
lang: Khmer
word: ក្រមុំចាស់
roman: krɑɑmum cah
lang: Khmer
word: ស្ត្រីព្រៅ
roman: strəy prɨw
lang: Korean
word: 올드 미스
roman: oldeu miseu
lang: Korean
word: 노처녀
roman: nocheonyeo
lang: Korean
word: 로처녀
roman: rocheonyeo
lang: Kyrgyz
word: кары кыз
roman: karı kız
lang: Lao
word: ນາງສາວແກ່
roman: nāng sāo kǣ
lang: Latvian
word: vecmeita
lang: Lithuanian
word: senmergė
lang: Lü
word: ᦉᦱᧁᦏᧁᧉ
roman: ṡaawṫhaw²
lang: Macedonian
word: стара мома
roman: stara moma
lang: Malay
word: andartu
lang: Manx
word: ben sneeuee
lang: Māori
word: wahine takakau
lang: Māori
word: takakau
lang: Māori
word: wahine taumaro
lang: Māori
word: maro kau
lang: Māori
word: marokore
lang: Māori
word: wahine kiritapu
lang: Mongolian
word: гэртээ өтөлсөн эмэгтэй
roman: gertee ötölsön emegtej
lang: Mongolian
word: нөхөргүй эмэгтэй
roman: nöxörgüj emegtej
lang: Mongolian
word: хөгшин хүүхэн
roman: xögšin xüüxen
lang: Mongolian
word: гэртээ хөгширсөн эмэгтэй
roman: gertee xögširsön emegtej
lang: Norwegian Bokmål
word: attergløyme
lang: Norwegian Bokmål
word: peppermø
lang: Norwegian Bokmål
word: peppermøy
lang: Norwegian Nynorsk
word: attergløyme
lang: Norwegian Nynorsk
word: peparmøy
lang: Pashto
word: په کور ناسته پېغله
roman: pə kor nāstə peǧlá
lang: Pashto
word: ستۍ
roman: satǝ́y
lang: Pashto
word: مجرده
roman: mojrada
lang: Iranian Persian
word: پیرْدُخْتَر
roman: pirdoxtar
lang: Polish
word: stara panna
lang: Portuguese
word: solteira
lang: Portuguese
word: solteirona
lang: Portuguese
word: encalhada
lang: Romanian
word: fată bătrână
lang: Russian
word: ста́рая де́ва
roman: stáraja déva
lang: Russian
word: векову́ха
roman: vekovúxa
lang: Scottish Gaelic
word: seana-mhaighdeann
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: бабадевојка
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: бабадјевојка
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: усѝделица
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: усѝдјелица
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: babadevojka
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: babadjevojka
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: usìdelica
lang: Serbo-Croatian
word: usìdjelica
lang: Shan
word: သၢဝ်ၵႄႇ
roman: sǎao kàae
lang: Sicilian
word: schetta
lang: Slovak
word: stará panna
lang: Slovene
word: stara devica
lang: Sotho
word: lefetwa
lang: Spanish
word: solterona
lang: Spanish
word: quedada
lang: Swedish
word: ungmö
lang: Swedish
word: fröken
lang: Tagalog
word: pindangga
lang: Tajik
word: духтари пир
roman: duxtar-i pir
lang: Tajik
word: пирдухтар
roman: pirduxtar
lang: Tatar
word: карт кыз
roman: qart qız
lang: Thai
word: เทื้อ
roman: tʉ́ʉa
lang: Thai
word: ทึนทึก
roman: tʉn-tʉ́k
lang: Thai
word: สาวทึนทึก
roman: sǎao-tʉn-tʉ́k
lang: Thai
word: สาวแก่
roman: sǎao-gɛ̀ɛ
lang: Turkish
word: kalmış
lang: Turkish
word: yaşlı kız
lang: Turkish
word: kız kurusu
lang: Turkmen
word: garry gyz
lang: Ukrainian
word: стара́ ді́ва
roman: stará díva
lang: Urdu
word: بُوڑی کُن٘واری
roman: būṛī kũvārī
lang: Uyghur
word: قېرى قىز
roman: qëri qiz
lang: Uzbek
word: qari qiz
lang: Vietnamese
word: bà cô già
lang: Vietnamese
word: gái già
lang: Welsh
word: hen ferch