princess

[prin-sis, -ses, prin-ses]

noun

a nonreigning female member of a royal family.

History/Historical. a female sovereign or monarch; queen.

the consort of a prince.

(in Great Britain) a daughter or granddaughter (if the child of a son) of a king or queen.

a woman considered to have the qualities or characteristics of a princess.

adjective

Also prin·cesse. (of a woman's dress, coat, or the like) styled with a close-fitting bodice and flared skirt, cut in single pieces, as gores, from shoulder to hem.

Origin of princess

1350–1400; Middle English princesse < Middle French. See prince, -ess

Related formsprin·cess·like, adjectiveprin·cess·ly, adjective

Usage note

See -ess.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for princesses

tycoon, executive, magnate, queen, king, emperor, sovereign, aristocrat, despot, crybaby, monarch, czar, sultan, shah, girl, adult, female, notable, personage, potentate

Examples from the Web for princesses

Contemporary Examples of princesses

Really Big Coloring Books has also published titles such as Superheroes of the Bible and Fairies & Princesses.
Ted Cruz saves America in This Right-Wing Coloring Book
Asawin Suebsaeng
November 13, 2014
And one daughter said “princesses” and the other said “bride.”
Cary Elwes, aka Westley, Shares Inconceivable Tales From the Making of ‘The Princess Bride’
Marlow Stern
September 17, 2014
William and Harry, and Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice—plus Elvis!
Lizzy Wilson, The American Heiress Who Brought Harry to Memphis
Tom Sykes
May 3, 2014
There was a lot of trench warfare between the Princesses Margaret and Michael, too.
Malice in the Palace: Prince George’s Treacherous New Digs
Tina Brown
July 27, 2013
Instead, the Princesses are deliberately, explicitly Jewish.
Is Bravo’s Jewish Princesses Long Island the Most Offensive TV Show Ever?
Andrew Romano
July 22, 2013

Historical Examples of princesses

Queens and princesses were considered equal with their husbands.
It Happened in Egypt
C. N. Williamson
Werner was with the princesses at the time, and told me that the effect of the scene was most dramatic.
A Hero of Our Time
M. Y. Lermontov
Only the Princesses of the blood and the royal family were admitted to it.
The Memoirs of Louis XIV., His Court and The Regency, Complete
Duc de Saint-Simon
Instinct, and some knowledge of the habits of princesses, triumphed; for (indeed) there She was!
The Golden Age
Kenneth Grahame
Moreover, she hoped to see something more of her cousins the princesses.
Two Penniless Princesses
Charlotte M. Yonge

British Dictionary definitions for princesses

princess

noun

(in Britain) a daughter of the sovereign or of one of the sovereign's sons

a nonreigning female member of a sovereign family

the wife and consort of a prince

any very attractive or outstanding woman

Also called: princess dress, princess line a style of dress with a fitted bodice and an A-line skirt that is shaped by seams from shoulder to hem without a seam at the waistline

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

Word Origin and History for princesses

princess

late 14c., "woman of royal or noble birth; daughter or wife of a ruler or prince; female ruler," a native formation, or else from Old French princesse, fem. of prince (see prince). Cf. Medieval Latin principissa, Italian principessa. As a colloquial form of address to a woman or girl, it is recorded from 1924 (as a term of address to a lover, early 15c.).