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Synonyms

maiden name

American  

noun

  1. a woman's surname before her marriage.

maiden name British  

noun

  1. a woman's surname before marriage

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of maiden name

First recorded in 1680–90

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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.

One told me she has started using her maiden name professionally because her married name was used in a scam.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

Van Rootselaar went mostly by Jesse Strang, the maiden name of her mother, Jennifer Strang.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026

Clemantina's parents didn't marry until after she was born, so her mother's maiden name was used on the birth certificate.

From BBC • Jul. 25, 2025

Laura, whose maiden name was Alejandra, said she had always planned to share her recipe more widely after the wedding.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2025

I’d recognized her when she’d visited Miss Sadie’s house, but didn’t realize that her maiden name was Carlson.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

Definitions 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.