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View synonyms for governess

governess

[ guhv-er-nis ]

noun

  1. a woman who is employed to take charge of a child's upbringing, education, etc.
  2. Archaic. a woman who is a ruler or governor.


governess

/ ˈɡʌvənɪs /

noun

  1. a woman teacher employed in a private household to teach and train the children
“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


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Gender Note

See -ess.
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Other Words From

  • gover·ness·y adjective
  • sub·govern·ess noun
  • under·govern·ess noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of governess1

1400–50; late Middle English governeress < Old French gouverneresse, feminine of gouverneur governor; -ess
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Example Sentences

To protect them, the babies were sent away far from court to lesser royal homes to be raised not by their parents but by a squad of nurses, governesses and tutors.

So far, most of this builds on the novel, except that our governess, Dani, has a guilt-ridden history revealed early on — she keeps seeing the ghost of her dead ex-fiancee.

From Vox

Governess: A young woman who was typically employed by wealthy families to care for and privately educate their children.

Victoria Winters: An orphan who is engaged by the Collins family as a governess for young David Collins.

The girl would become Victoria Winters, an orphan hired by the Collins Family as a governess for the troubled young heir.

A victim of the waning governess trade, Miss Ellington must take a position at the crumbling Scroop Hall.

Later she got a job as governess to the illegitimate children that Louis XIV had fathered with another mistress.

The Princess still kept her eyes fixed on Louis, while, in a suppressed and unsteady voice, she answered her governess.

The governess is Swiss and for one week she talks nothing but French and for another nothing but German.

The child who has got languages from its governess, therefore, marks time—that is to say, wastes time in these subjects at school.

A real improvement in the boys character dated from the arrival of a new governess, Nastasia Petrov.

She had a governess and she had a maid, but I must say she didn't seem an atom set up, and was just as nice when she met us girls.

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governancegovernment