soubrette

[soo-bret]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR soubrette ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a maidservant or lady's maid in a play, opera, or the like, especially one displaying coquetry, pertness, and a tendency to engage in intrigue.

an actress playing such a role.

any lively or pert young woman.

Origin of soubrette

1745–55; < French: lady's maid < Provençal soubreto, derivative of soubret affected, ultimately derivative of Old Provençal sobrar < Latin superāre to be above

Related formssou·bret·tish, adjective

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

Related Words for soubrette

star, artist, character, clown, player, villain, comedian, entertainer, performer, soubrette, thespian, impersonator, amateur, ham, lead, extra, understudy, mimic, foil, mime

Examples from the Web for soubrette

Historical Examples of soubrette

But he is carrying on dreadfully with a soubrette in New York.
The Love Affairs of an Old Maid
Lilian Bell
The girls will dance with the two men, the boys with the soubrette.
Jill the Reckless
P. G. (Pelham Grenville) Wodehouse
It was something to replace the nurse of elder comedy by the soubrette.
A History of French Literature
Edward Dowden
That a soubrette is always fifteen or twenty years older than she looks.
The American Credo
George Jean Nathan
Dick has announced his engagement to an actress—a soubrette, too, in a farce-comedy.
The Smart Set
Clyde Fitch

British Dictionary definitions for soubrette

soubrette

noun

a minor female role in comedy, often that of a pert lady's maid

any pert or flirtatious girl

Derived Formssoubrettish, adjective

Word Origin for soubrette

C18: from French: maidservant, from Provençal soubreto, from soubret conceited, from soubra to exceed, from Latin superāre to surmount, from super above

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 soubrette

1753, theatrical jargon word for lady's maid characters in plays and operas, who typically were pert, flirtatious, and intriguing, from French, from Provençal soubreto "affected, conceited," fem. of soubret "coy, reserved," from soubra "to set aside," originally "to exceed," from Old Provençal sobrar, from Latin superare "to rise above, overcome," from super "over, above, beyond" (see super-).