old lady

American  

noun

Informal.

• old ladies
  plural

1. a mother, usually one's own.

2. a wife.

3. a girlfriend or female lover, especially a female lover with whom one cohabits.

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old lady British  

noun

1. an informal term for mother 1 wife

2. a large noctuid moth, Mormo maura, that has drab patterned wings originally thought to resemble an elderly Victorian lady's shawl

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• old ladies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of old lady

First recorded in 1775–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

old lady

"There was a lady there who took them all water, the drinks ran out so Connor gave his drink to an old lady," she said.

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

But if she, a towering scholar of Yiddish literature, assumes the pose of a little old lady, don’t be fooled.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

“Those last scenes with me looking like a lonely old lady walking hunched over in the garden? Boy, I told him to get rid of those,” she said, referring to the documentary’s director, R.J.

From Salon ● Apr. 16, 2026

Read on: Want to be a rich old lady?

From MarketWatch ● Jan. 16, 2026

No way was I going to wear my hair out in curls again, not after Lettie said I looked like some old lady.

From "Root Magic" by Eden Royce

Related Words

• bride
• lover
• spouse
• wife