old maid
noun
1
2
: a prim fussy person
he was a real old maid about burning rubbish—
R. C. Ruark
R. C. Ruark3
: a simple card game in which cards are matched in pairs and the player holding the unmatched card at the end loses
Examples of old maid in a Sentence
In my generation, you were considered an old maid at 25.
Recent Examples on the Web
And who didn’t end up an old maid.
—Sarah Larson, The New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2022
This was true especially for women who did not fit into typical gendered roles like the virtuous bride, the good mother or the helpful old maid.
—Joel Christensen, The Conversation, 15 Nov. 2022
An old maid at six and twenty, Kate arrives in London with her mother, Lady Mary Sharma (Shelley Conn), and younger half-sister Edwina (Charithra Chandran).
—Katie Rife, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2022
Higgins also noted that Mary’s fate as an old maid in this alternative universe, portrayed as hideous and sad, is presented as perfectly fine, appropriate and desirable for Annie in the real world.
—Christopher Wilson, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Dec. 2021
As Beres laughs and tries to decipher who has the old maid, MacDougall starts to laugh, too.
—cleveland, 8 Mar. 2021
Sarah Larson, The New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2022
This was true especially for women who did not fit into typical gendered roles like the virtuous bride, the good mother or the helpful old maid.
—Joel Christensen, The Conversation, 15 Nov. 2022
An old maid at six and twenty, Kate arrives in London with her mother, Lady Mary Sharma (Shelley Conn), and younger half-sister Edwina (Charithra Chandran).
—Katie Rife, Rolling Stone, 29 Mar. 2022
Higgins also noted that Mary’s fate as an old maid in this alternative universe, portrayed as hideous and sad, is presented as perfectly fine, appropriate and desirable for Annie in the real world.
—Christopher Wilson, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Dec. 2021
As Beres laughs and tries to decipher who has the old maid, MacDougall starts to laugh, too.
—cleveland, 8 Mar. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'old maid.' 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
circa 1530, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Dictionary Entries Near old maid
Cite this Entry
“Old maid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/old%20maid. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
old maid
noun1
: an elderly unmarried woman
2
: a very neat fussy person
3
: a card game in which all but one of the cards are matched in pairs and the player holding the unmatched card at the end loses
old-maidish
adjective
ˈōl(d)-ˈmād-ish
More from Merriam-Webster on old maid
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for old maid
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about old maid
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