Maid (?), n. [Shortened
from maiden.
&?;. See Maiden.]
1. An unmarried woman; usually, a young unmarried woman; esp., a girl; a virgin; a maiden.
Would I had
died a maid,
And never seen thee, never borne thee son.
Shak. Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her attire? Yet my people
have forgotten me.
Jer. ii. 32.
2. A man who has not had sexual intercourse. [Obs.]
Christ was a
maid and shapen as a man.
Chaucer.
3. A female servant.
Spinning amongst her maids.
Shak. &fist; Maid is used either adjectively or in composition, signifying
female, as in maid child, maidservant.
4. (Zoöl.) The female of a ray or skate,
esp. of the gray skate (Raia batis), and of the thornback (R.
clavata). [Prov. Eng.]
Fair maid. (Zoöl.) See under Fair, a.
-- Maid of honor, a female attendant of a queen or royal princess; -- usually of noble family, and having to
perform only nominal or honorary duties. -- Old
maid. See under Old.
Hear it pronounced