La"dy , a. Belonging or becoming to a
lady; ladylike.
"Some lady trifles."
Shak.
La"dy (lā"d&ybreve;), n.;
pl. Ladies (-d&ibreve;z). [OE. ladi, læfdi, AS.
hl&aemacr;fdige, hl&aemacr;fdie; AS.
hlāf loaf + a root of uncertain origin, possibly akin to E. dairy. See Loaf, and cf. Lord.]
1. A woman who
looks after the domestic affairs of a family; a mistress; the female head of a household.
Agar, the handmaiden of Sara, whence comest thou, and whither goest thou? The which answered, Fro the face of
Sara my lady.
Wyclif (Gen. xvi. 8.).
2. A woman having proprietary rights or authority; mistress; --
a feminine correlative of lord. "Lord or lady of high degree." Lowell.
Of all these
bounds, even from this line to
this, . . .
We make thee lady.
Shak.
3. A woman to whom
the particular homage of a knight was paid; a woman
to whom one
is devoted or bound; a sweetheart.
The soldier here his wasted store supplies,
And takes new valor from his lady's eyes.
Waller. 4. A woman of social distinction or position. In England, a title prefixed to the name of any woman whose husband is not of lower rank than a baron,
or whose father was a
nobleman not lower than an
earl. The wife of a baronet or knight has the title of
Lady by courtesy, but not by right.
5. A woman of refined or gentle manners; a well-bred woman; -- the feminine correlative of gentleman.
6. A wife;
-- not now in
approved usage. Goldsmith.
7.
(Zoöl.) The
triturating apparatus in the stomach of a lobster;
-- so called from a fancied resemblance to a seated female figure. It consists of calcareous
plates.
Ladies' man, a man who affects
the society of ladies. -- Lady altar, an altar in a lady chapel.
Shipley. -- Lady chapel, a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary. -- Lady court, the court of a lady of the manor. -- Lady crab (Zoöl.), a handsomely spotted swimming crab (Platyonichus ocellatus) very common on the sandy
shores of the Atlantic coast of the United
States. -- Lady fern. (Bot.) See Female fern, under Female, and Illust. of Fern. -- Lady in waiting, a lady of the queen's household, appointed to wait upon or
attend the queen. -- Lady Mass, a Mass said in
honor of the Virgin Mary. Shipley. Lady
of the manor, a lady having jurisdiction of a manor; also,
the wife of
a manor lord. Lady's maid, a
maidservant who dresses
and waits upon a lady. Thackeray. --
Our Lady, the Virgin Mary.
Hear it pronounced