leading lady

noun

: an actress who plays the leading female role

Examples of leading lady in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But instead of a smooth path ahead, the unfortunate thespians are dealt a hand that includes an unconscious leading lady, a corpse that has trouble remaining dead and clumsy actors who have difficulties remembering their lines. The Indianapolis Star, 11 Apr. 2024 And what about that final curveball when Daisy turned down the role of The Bachelorette, and Jenn Tran was instead chosen to be the next leading lady? Jessica Radloff, Glamour, 26 Mar. 2024 Yet the only person who can give you permission to be a leading lady is yourself. Shon Faye, Vogue, 18 Mar. 2024 Chu became visibly emotional before introducing his leading ladies, choking back tears as Platt touched him on the shoulder. Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024 Barbara Rush, the classy yet largely unheralded leading lady who sparkled in the 1950s melodramas Magnificent Obsession, Bigger Than Life and The Young Philadelphians, has died. Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Mar. 2024 Chu confirmed that, at the insistance of his leading ladies, all of their vocals were done live on set. Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 21 Mar. 2024 Clever was often the name of the game on the show, like when a leading lady (Harley Jane Kozak's Mary Duvall McCormick) was killed by a giant C that fell on her from a sign on top of a building. Abby West, EW.com, 20 Mar. 2024 From eighth billing to bankable leading lady, Immaculate director Michael Mohan has played a key role in Sydney Sweeney’s rise to superstar status. Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'leading lady.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1860, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of leading lady was in 1860

Dictionary Entries Near leading lady

Cite this Entry

“Leading lady.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leading%20lady. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

leading lady

noun
: an actress who plays the leading female role in a play or movie

More from Merriam-Webster on leading lady

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