ayah
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of ayah
First recorded in 1775–85; from Hindi āyā, from Portuguese aia “maidservant,” from Latin avia “grandmother,” equivalent to av(us) “grandfather” + -ia feminine suffix
Vocabulary lists containing ayah
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.
“They haven’t fixed it,” Amer tells the ayah.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 31, 2018
“We offered to send him to the best schools,” his mother tells the ayah, nodding toward Amer.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 31, 2018
“Weren’t we happy there. Take me out,” she tells the ayah, replacing her cup on its saucer.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 31, 2018
Upstairs, his mother and the ayah are arguing over his mother’s handbag.
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 31, 2018
She said she had applied for a UN job and they would all live in The Hague with a Dutch ayah to look after them.
From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy
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.
