mermaid
Americannoun
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mermaids
plural
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(in folklore) a female marine creature, having the head, torso, and arms of a woman and the tail of a fish.
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a highly skilled female swimmer.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of mermaid
First recorded in 1300–50, mermaid is from the Middle English word mermayde. See mere 2, maid
Explanation
A mermaid is mythical sea creature that has the head and upper body of a woman and a tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in folklore from around the world, from the ancient Greek sirens who were said to lure sailors to a watery death, to the Mami Wata water spirits from African mythology. The Disney version of mermaids comes from the Hans Christian Andersen story "The Little Mermaid," about a mermaid who trades her life in the sea for love with a human. Mermaid means "maid of the sea," from mere, "sea" in Middle English.
Vocabulary lists containing mermaid
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.
See Examples For:
Of course, some of what he exhibited for his patrons had nothing to do with the real world—like his infamous Fiji mermaid, purportedly half monkey, half fish.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026
That could mean a classic A-line or ballgown for the ceremony with a shift to mermaid cut, column or mini dress for later events, she said.
From BBC ● Aug. 29, 2025
And if you’re really lucky, maybe you’ll find a mermaid.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2025
It is amusing to see young Reubens in drag as a kid at Halloween, or playing a Cher-inspired mermaid in a video he made while at college.
From Salon ● Jan. 30, 2025
The mermaid in the painting in the prefects’ bathroom was laughing.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
"But this time with the iconic, much-loved characters of Captain Hook and Peter Pan, not to mention, fairies, pirates and mermaids."
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2025
Fish-tailed mermaids and Barbie dolls are free from ticking biological and career clocks – although they imagine or play at the things determined by those clocks, too.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2023
Not only that, Ruby learns that the kraken are warriors who protect the sea from their rivals, such as the vain and power-hungry mermaids.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2023
Mythical hybrid beasts such as mermaids, centaurs and chimeras testify to our enduring fascination with the plasticity of biological form: the idea that natural organisms can mutate or be reconfigured.
From Scientific American ● May 31, 2023
“Tell your uncle that the hour has come. That the mermaids have bleached hair.”
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
