dominatrix

[dom-uh-ney-triks]

noun, plural dom·i·na·tri·ces

[dom-uh-ney-truh-seez, -nuh-trahy-seez] /ˌdɒm əˈneɪ trəˌsiz, -nəˈtraɪ siz/.

a woman who plays the dominant role in a sado-masochistic sexual relationship or encounter.
a woman who dominates.

Origin of dominatrix

From Latin, dating back to 1555–65; see origin at dominate, -trix

Usage note

See -trix.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for dominatrix

Contemporary Examples of dominatrix

They are personally invested in my growth not only as a dominatrix but as a kinkster and a person.
Dungeons and Genital Clamps: Inside a Legendary BDSM Chateau
Ian Frisch
December 20, 2014
This uniqueness is a trait that she attributes to her early success as a dominatrix.
Whip It: Secrets of a Dominatrix
Justin Jones
November 25, 2014
She derives no sexual pleasure from her dominatrix gig, she says, but still likes “the arousal of the ego.”
Is This Dildo-Licking, Dominatrix-Loving Vogue Blogger the New Face of Feminism?
Lizzie Crocker
May 22, 2014
He even gets a wax candle pulled out of his ass by a dominatrix.
Why Leonardo DiCaprio, Who Wows in ‘The Wolf of Wall Street,’ Deserves to (Finally) Win An Oscar
Marlow Stern
February 17, 2014
Before long, however, she shines as the dominatrix of the later sequences.
Polanski and Jarmusch at Cannes
Richard Porton
May 26, 2013

British Dictionary definitions for dominatrix

dominatrix

noun plural dominatrices (ˌdɒmɪnəˈtraɪsiːz)

a woman who is the dominant sexual partner in a sadomasochistic relationship
a dominant woman

Word Origin for dominatrix

C16: from Latin, fem of dominātor, from dominārī to be lord over

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

Word Origin and History for dominatrix

"dominant female entity," attested since 1560s, though not in quite the usual modern sense ("Rome ... dominatrix of nations" [1561]). See domination + -trix. Modern BDSM sense attested by 1976.