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laundress

American

[lawn-dris, lahn-] / ˈlɔn drɪs, ˈlɑn- /

noun

a woman whose work is the washing and ironing of clothes, linens, etc.

laundress British

/ ˈlɔːndrɪs /

noun

a woman who launders clothes, sheets, etc, for a living

"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

Gender

See -ess.

Other Word Forms

underlaundress

noun

Etymology

Origin of laundress

1540–50; obsolete launder launderer ( see launder) + -ess

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.

Reid was born Dec. 2, 1939, the son of an alcoholic hard-rock miner who killed himself at 58 and a mother who served as a laundress in a bordello.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 28, 2021

What is the difference between an honest and a dishonest laundress?

From Salon • Sep. 6, 2021

Ball won the 2008 Olivier Award for his performance as this demure, soft-spoken laundress when the Broadway hit first came to London, and his affection for the generous-hearted show seems only to have deepened since.

From New York Times • Aug. 5, 2021

Catherine Lynch, an Irish immigrant and laundress, moved to Elm Street around 1870 when the house was divided into apartments.

From Washington Post • Nov. 28, 2020

“I’ll take her for my helper,” the laundress said.

From "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023