painted lady
noun
plural painted ladies
1
: a migratory nymphalid butterfly (Vanessa cardui) with wings mottled in brown, orange, black, and white
2
informal
: a woman who engages in sex acts and especially sexual intercourse in exchange for pay : a woman who is a sex worker
Examples of painted lady in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
His new book and exhibition, Constant Bloom, follows that journey, in which painted lady butterflies follow the seasonal rains and the flowers that pop up in their wake.
—
Natalie Escobar, NPR, 16 Apr. 2025
The pollen record even suggested a reason why painted ladies suddenly became so abundant in 2019.
—Saugat Bolakhe, JSTOR Daily, 23 Jan. 2025
Orange clouds of painted lady butterflies swarm there on their way to Northern Europe, and herds of wild horses roam among the oil installations.
—Stanley Reed, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2019
The butterflies in question were painted ladies, which are sometimes mistaken for monarch butterflies.
—Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 6 Oct. 2017
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Natalie Escobar, NPR, 16 Apr. 2025
The pollen record even suggested a reason why painted ladies suddenly became so abundant in 2019.
—Saugat Bolakhe, JSTOR Daily, 23 Jan. 2025
Orange clouds of painted lady butterflies swarm there on their way to Northern Europe, and herds of wild horses roam among the oil installations.
—Stanley Reed, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2019
The butterflies in question were painted ladies, which are sometimes mistaken for monarch butterflies.
—Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 6 Oct. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Painted lady.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/painted%20lady. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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