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maiden

 - 4 dictionary results
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maid⋅en

  [meyd-n]
Use maiden in a Sentence
–noun
1. a girl or young unmarried woman; maid.
2. a horse that has never won a race.
3. a race open only to maiden horses.
4. an instrument resembling the guillotine, formerly used in Scotland for beheading criminals.
5. Cricket. maiden over.
–adjective
6. of, pertaining to, or befitting a girl or unmarried woman.
7. (of a woman) unmarried: my maiden aunt.
8. made, tried, appearing, etc., for the first time: a maiden flight.
9. virgin.
10. (of a horse) never having won a race or a prize.
11. (of a prize or a race) offered for or open only to maiden horses.
12. untried, as a knight, soldier, or weapon.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME; OE mægden, equiv. to mægd, mæg(e)th (c. G Magd, Goth magaths) + -en -en 5

Related forms:
maid⋅en⋅ish, adjective
maid⋅en⋅ship, noun
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maiden over

 
–noun
Cricket. an over in which no runs are made.
Also called maiden.

Origin:
1850–55
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To maiden
maid·en   (mād'n)   
n.  

    1. An unmarried girl or woman.

    2. A virgin.

    3. A racehorse that has never won a race.

    4. A maiden over.

  2. A machine resembling the guillotine, used in Scotland in the 16th and 17th centuries to behead criminals.

  3. Sports

    1. A racehorse that has never won a race.

    2. A maiden over.

adj.  

  1. Of, relating to, or befitting a maiden: a maiden blush.

  2. Being an unmarried girl or woman: a maiden aunt.

  3. Being a racehorse that has never won a race.

  4. First or earliest: a maiden voyage; a maiden speech in the Senate.


[Middle English, from Old English mægden; see maghu- in Indo-European roots.]
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

maiden 
O.E. mæden, mægden, dim. of mægð, mægeð "maid," from P.Gmc. *magadinom "young womanhood, sexually inexperienced female" (cf. O.S. magath, O.Fris. maged, O.H.G. magad, Ger. Magd "maid, maidservant," Ger. Mädchen "girl, maid," from Mägdchen "little maid"), fem. variant of PIE base *maghu- "youngster of either sex, unmarried person" (cf. O.E. magu "child, son," Avestan magava- "unmarried," O.Ir. maug "slave"). Figurative sense of "new fresh, first" (cf. maiden voyage) first recorded 1555. For maidenhead (c.1300) see godhead.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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