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distaff

 - 4 dictionary results

dis⋅taff

  [dis-taf, -tahf]
Use distaff in a Sentence
–noun
1. a staff with a cleft end for holding wool, flax, etc., from which the thread is drawn in spinning by hand.
2. a similar attachment on a spinning wheel.
3. Archaic.
a. a woman or women collectively.
b. woman's work.
–adjective
4. Sometimes Offensive. noting, pertaining to, characteristic of, or suitable for a woman; female.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME distaf, OE distæf, equiv. to dis- (c. LG diesse bunch of flax on a distaff; cf. dizen ) + stæf staff
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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dis·taff   (dĭs'tāf')   
n.  

    1. A staff that holds on its cleft end the unspun flax, wool, or tow from which thread is drawn in spinning by hand.

    2. An attachment for a spinning wheel that serves this purpose.

  2. Work and concerns traditionally considered important to women.

  3. Women considered as a group.


[Middle English distaf, from Old English distæf : dis-, bunch of flax + stæf, staff.]
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

distaff 
O.E. distæf "stick that holds flax for spinning," from dis- "bunch of flax" + stæf "stick, staff." A synonym in Eng. for "the female sex, female authority in the family," since at least the late 1400s, probably because in the Middle Ages spinning was typically done by women.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Bible Dictionary

Distaff

(Heb. pelek, a "circle"), the instrument used for twisting threads by a whirl (Prov. 31:19).

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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