gentlewoman
Americannoun
-
archaic a woman regarded as being of good family or breeding; lady
-
rare a woman who is cultured, courteous, and well-educated
-
history a woman in personal attendance on a high-ranking lady
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of gentlewoman
Middle English word dating back to 1200–50; see origin at gentle, woman
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Portrait of a Court Lady,” acquired in 2013, shows the nearly life-size image of a refined gentlewoman seated on a garden terrace.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2025
"Because being a polite gentleman or gentlewoman is all about first impressions," she said.
From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2025
One of his stories is about a Southern gentlewoman who keeps her dead fiance’s corpse in her bed.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2023
This week, Bahloul published an analysis under the title, "Najla Bouden, the gentlewoman" in which he criticized the prime minister's political and economic performance.
From Reuters ● Nov. 15, 2022
She is almost always busy taking care of Mrs. Forrest, a very plump gentlewoman who hasn’t figured out yet that life in James Town will be a lot harder than life in England.
From "Blood on the River" by Elisa Carbone
The Lady was established in 1885 by Thomas Gibson Bowles, as a magazine for gentlewomen, a weekly guide to navigating the social minefield of well-to-do British life.
From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2025
But the gentlewomen are in rare form in this movie, and adding Imelda Staunton to the mix as Violet’s hated cousin Maud Bagshaw, the queen’s lady-in-waiting, sharpens their barbs.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2019
Lucky for Lucy, Annie, Phoebe—these are our granddaughters—and all the many bright young gentlewomen,
From Slate ● Apr. 12, 2018
In 1987, when my book first appeared, the scholarly consensus was that “Dido and Aeneas” was written for Josias Priest’s boarding school for young gentlewomen.
From New York Times ● Dec. 15, 2017
She was one of the few gentlewomen I have ever known, and has remained throughout my life the measure of what a human being can be.
From "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
