hostess

noun host·ess \ ˈhō-stəs \

Updated on: 13 Apr 2018

Definition of hostess

1 : a woman who entertains socially

2 a : a woman in charge of a public dining room who seats diners

b : a female employee on a public conveyance (such as an airplane) who manages the provisioning of food and attends passengers

c : a woman who acts as a partner or companion to male patrons in a dance hall or bar

See hostess defined for English-language learners

See hostess defined for kids

Examples of hostess in a Sentence

We were greeted by our hostess.
She's the hostess of a popular talk show.

Recent Examples of hostess from the Web

The hostess stand seemed to be an authentic Japanese tansu, or cabinet, with good construction, noted Okamura.

— frank shyong, latimes.com, "Yamashiro, a century-old Japanese-style castle in Hollywood, tests limits of cultural appropriation debate," 7 Apr. 2018
Elena Iglesias began working at the airport lounge at just 18 years old, starting out as a hostess.

— jay weaver, miamiherald, "This couple stole millions from an MIA lounge. Now they’re doing prison time. | Miami Herald," 5 Apr. 2018
Andrea complains of anxiety on international flights, considers ionized water in glass bottles the perfect hostess gift, and assumes Roseanne had a birth plan in 1970-something.

— refinery29.com, "The Problem With Becky's Surrogacy Storyline On Roseanne," 28 Mar. 2018
The Lassos, as a precision drill team, were an instant hit, asked to be ushers at school events, act as hostesses at community gatherings and march in out-of-town parades, such as the Washington’s Birthday Celebration in Laredo.

— paula allen, San Antonio Express-News, "Trick-roping San Antonio teens took tea with first lady Eleanor Roosevelt," 24 Mar. 2018
The 64-seat dining room is nicely separated from the bar by the restrooms and hostess table.

— brion o’connor, BostonGlobe.com, "It’s all in the family at Casa Blanca," 23 Mar. 2018
One is an elegant hostess, willing to cook all day to make the perfect party a good thing.

— daniel neman, charlotteobserver, "Cooking from scratch faces off with semi-homemade | Charlotte Observer," 20 Mar. 2018
Employees told investigators that a supervisor made them work as party hostesses at her home on weekends.

— juliet linderman, chicagotribune.com, "Internal probe finds misconduct within Bono's advocacy group," 10 Mar. 2018
Vanessa Seward of Azzaro once extoled the virtues of longer lengths for the cocktail hour, and so did every '70s hostess in her Ultrasuede Halston.

— chelsea peng, Marie Claire, "Dressing to Win: How to Look Like the Coolest Girl in Any Room," 29 Sep. 2015

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hostess.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of hostess

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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Other Job Terms

factotum, milliner, ostler, scrivener, tinker, webster, wordsmith

hostess

verb

Definition of hostess

intransitive verb

: to act as hostess

transitive verb

: to serve as hostess to

First Known Use of hostess

1927

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

See Words from the same year

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HOSTESS Defined for English Language Learners

hostess

noun

Definition of hostess for English Language Learners

: a woman who is entertaining guests socially or as a job
: a woman whose job it is to greet and help people in a restaurant or on an airplane or ship
: a woman who talks to guests on a television or radio show