laundress

American  

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

noun

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

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laundress British  

/ ˈlɔːndrɪs /

noun

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

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Gender

See -ess.

Other Word Forms

• underlaundress noun

Etymology

Origin of laundress

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

Example Sentences

Ethel Waters in 1949 became the second Black performer to score an Oscar nomination as an illiterate Southern laundress in “Pinky.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 8, 2024

When the rain finally returned earlier this year, Ms. Vaolina — the farmer turned laundress — joined the other climate refugees in the refugee camp as they danced in the rain.

From New York Times • Nov. 17, 2022

In contemplating the record Powerball, I found myself thinking of Oseola McCarty, the laundress of Hattiesburg, Miss., who saved her few spare nickels each week for 75 years, rather than gambling them away.

From Washington Post • Nov. 4, 2022

To that end, another bronze sculpture set in a reflecting pool, “Last Garment,” depicts a laundress at work.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 21, 2022

But the image of the laundress, dazed with prayer, will not leave me.

From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein