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damsel

 - 3 dictionary results

dam⋅sel

  [dam-zuhl]
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–noun Literary.
a young woman or girl; a maiden, originally one of gentle or noble birth.
Origin:
1150–1200; ME damisel < AF (OF damoisele) < VL *dominicella, equiv. to L domin(a) lady (see dame ) + -i- -i- + -cella fem. dim. suffix
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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dam·sel   (dām'zəl)   
n.  A young woman or girl; a maiden.

[Middle English damisele, from Old French dameisele, damoiselle, from Vulgar Latin *dominicella, diminutive of domina, lady; see dame.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

damsel 
1199, from O.Fr. dameisele, modified by association with dame from earlier donsele, from Gallo-Romance *domnicella, dim. of L. domina "lady" (see dame). Archaic until revived by romantic poets, along with 16c.-17c. variant form damozel.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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