maiden

American  

[meyd-n] / ˈmeɪd n /

noun

• maidens
  plural

1. a girl or young unmarried woman; maid.

2. Archaic. a female virgin.

3. Maiden, (in Neopaganism) the first form of the Goddess, represented as a young woman and said to symbolize youth and the first stages of life or growth.

4. a horse that has never won a race.

5. a race open only to maiden horses.

6. an instrument resembling the guillotine, formerly used in Scotland for beheading criminals.

7. Cricket. maiden over.

---

adjective

1. Archaic. of, relating to, or befitting a girl or unmarried woman.

   her maiden virtues.

2. Archaic. (of a woman, especially one past middle age) unmarried.

   my maiden aunt.

3. (of a girl or woman) never having had sexual intercourse; virgin.

4. made, tried, appearing, etc., for the first time.

   a maiden flight.

5. (of a horse) never having won a race or a prize.

6. (of a prize or a race) offered for or open only to maiden horses.

7. untried, as a knight, soldier, or weapon.

maiden British  

/ ˈmeɪdən /

noun

1. archaic

   1. a young unmarried girl, esp when a virgin

   2. ( as modifier )

      a maiden blush

2. horse racing

   1. a horse that has never won a race

   2. ( as modifier )

      a maiden race

3. cricket See maiden over

4. Also called: clothes maiden.  dialect a frame on which clothes are hung to dry; clothes horse

5. (modifier) of or relating to an older unmarried woman

   a maiden aunt

6. (modifier) of or involving an initial experience or attempt

   a maiden voyage

   maiden speech

7. (modifier) (of a person or thing) untried; unused

8. (modifier) (of a place) never trodden, penetrated, or captured

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• maidenship
  noun
• maiden-like
  adjective
• maidenish
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• maidens
  plural

Etymology

Origin of maiden

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English mægden, equivalent to mægd, mæg(e)th (cognate with German Magd, Gothic magaths ) + -en -en ⁵

Explanation

Maiden is an old-fashioned term for a girl or an unmarried young woman. If you like reading fantasy novels, you've probably encountered plenty of knights and maidens — and maybe even a dragon or two. These days, you will hardly ever see this word used to mean an unmarried woman, except maybe humorously. However, you will see it used when discussing the maiden voyage of a ship or plane: in both cases, the word indicates youth and inexperience. Also, the maiden name of a married woman is her name before marriage, a name many women keep after marriage too. There is also a meaning of maiden in the baseball-like British game of cricket.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

maiden maidens

The key stories of the maiden Madring race were:

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

And in Barcelona this year, Lewis Hamilton's maiden Ferrari victory was helped by a VSC that gave him a cheap pit stop on a different tyre strategy from rivals Mercedes.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

This was only British number one Fery's second appearance at an overseas major, following his maiden Australian Open campaign in January.

From BBC ● Sep. 1, 2026

He scored 36 tries alone on his maiden Great Britain tour, dazzling both Australia and New Zealand in 1954 under captain and fellow Welshman Dickie Williams.

From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026

Therefore when Chryseis had been returned to her father, Agamemnon sent two of his squires to Achilles’ tent to take his prize of honor away from him, the maiden Briseis.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

But the cyclops can’t solve the simplest of riddles and the increasingly exasperated maidens, who’ll be free once a riddle is solved, can’t get them to stop approaching the cave or from making terrible guesses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 8, 2026

She conceded just 17 runs in her 10 overs, three of which were maidens and into the bargain accounted for four wickets.

From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2025

She told Newsday afterward that the most difficult clue was in the third puzzle: “Greek festival maidens with baskets on their heads.”

From New York Times ● May 3, 2024

Even with England's unprecedented fast-scoring approach over the previous year, few would have predicted that Australia would managed only 34 maidens in the entire series without the assistance of a world-ending asteroid strike.

From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2023

A band of warriors followed her, among them a number of maidens.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

Related Words

• inaugural
• introductory