dragon lady

American  

noun

1. (often initial capital letters) a woman of somewhat sinister glamour often perceived as wielding ruthless or corrupt power.

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dragon lady Idioms  

1. A domineering or belligerent woman, as in They called her the neighborhood dragon lady—she was always yelling at the children. This slangy term was originally the name of a villainous Asian woman in Milton Caniff's popular cartoon strip Terry and the Pirates (1934–1973), which ran in many newspapers. It was transferred to more general use in the mid-1900s.

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Etymology

Origin of dragon lady

So called after the villainous Asian woman in the cartoon strip Terry and the Pirates (1934–1973) created by U.S. cartoonist Milton Caniff (1907–88)

Example Sentences

Elizabeth Debicki could easily repeat as the doomed Princess Diana, but I’m fond of Christine Baranski’s “Gilded” dragon lady and “Morning Show’s” Holland Taylor raging against ageism and sexism.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2024

Some critics lambasted Nancy Reagan as a meddlesome "dragon lady," derided her anti-drug campaign and ridiculed her for consulting an astrologer to schedule presidential events.

From Reuters • Mar. 7, 2016

And for my money, Emilia Clarke sold the character, as an emotional being and a bad-ass dragon lady, better then ever in this finale.

From Time • Jun. 17, 2011

Something about getting chased by a large dragon lady with poison swords made it real hard to relax.

From "The Battle of the Labyrinth" by Rick Riordan