abigail

¹ American  

[ab-i-geyl] / ˈæb ɪˌgeɪl /

noun

1. a lady's maid.

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Abigail ² American  

[ab-i-geyl] / ˈæb ɪˌgeɪl /

noun

1. (in the Bible) the wife of Nabal and later of David.

2. a first name: from a Hebrew word meaning “joy of the father.”

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Abigail British  

/ ˈæbɪˌɡeɪl /

noun

1. Old Testament the woman who brought provisions to David and his followers and subsequently became his wife (I Samuel 25:1–42)

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Etymology

Origin of abigail

1645–55; after Abigail, name of attendant in play The Scornful Lady (1610), by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher

Example Sentences

Her cheeks flamed before the sharp eyes of the abigail, and then flamed again with scorn at her own folly.

From The Fortunes of the Farrells by Vaizey, George de Horne, Mrs.

And, of course, the abigail swore to the fact.

From Barry Lyndon by Thackeray, William Makepeace

The abigail carried the letter to the boy, and the boy departed, very well pleased to get clear of the castle without having received any further reproof.

From Run to Earth A Novel by Braddon, M. E. (Mary Elizabeth)

Pooh!" scoffed the abigail, "you may spare your breath.

From The Maid of Honour (Vol. 3 of 3) A Tale of the Dark Days of France by Wingfield, Lewis

And Ugly, her abigail, she had her say, too?

From Curiosities of Puritan Nomenclature by Bardsley, Charles W.