spinster
noun
spin·ster
ˈspin(t)-stər 
1
: a woman whose occupation is to spin
2
a
archaic
: an unmarried woman of gentle family
b
: an unmarried woman and especially one past the common age for marrying
3
: a woman who seems unlikely to marry
spinsterly
adjective
Examples of spinster in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Nor is Agnes happy about how well her spinster sister, Ada (Cynthia Nixon), is getting along with the church's friendly new rector, Luke Forte (Robert Sean Leonard).
—
EW.com, 27 Oct. 2023
Like Miranda, Nixon’s Gilded Age character, Ada, is going through a romantic awakening of her own, having married for the first time after being a spinster her entire life.
—Vulture, 17 Jan. 2024
Advertisement Esther is a lonely spinster who falls in love with George, an immigrant worker on the Panama Canal project who woos her through a series of romantic letters, penned and read by others, since Esther and George are illiterate.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Jan. 2024
Like Nicki Minaj, Maude Apatow, Chloe Cherry and Julia Fox: all of whom have emerged on the red carpet looking, some might say, like vengeful 19th-century spinsters.
—Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2023
On the strength of those performances, the Nebraska native — no, she was not born in Germany — was cast in 1963 as the spinster Lizzy in 110 in the Shade, based on N. Richard Nash’s play The Rainmaker.
—Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 July 2023
Who knows, maybe some of these spinsters just haven’t met the right part-time wedding d.j. yet?
—Danielle Kraese, The New Yorker, 14 June 2023
Vittoria, a spinster maid, has no social or marital or professional status to elevate her, no institutional power on her side, no particular neighborhood influence or leverage except for her emotive force, which is considerable: to Giovanna her seething is majestic.
—Elaine Blair, The New York Review of Books, 24 Sep. 2020
Of all the female characters in 19th-century literature, none remain quite as mystifying—or misunderstood—as Miss Havisham, the wedding dress–enshrouded, organizationally challenged spinster at the heart of Charles Dickens’s 1861 novel Great Expectations.
—Anna Fixsen, ELLE Decor, 18 Apr. 2023
EW.com, 27 Oct. 2023
Like Miranda, Nixon’s Gilded Age character, Ada, is going through a romantic awakening of her own, having married for the first time after being a spinster her entire life.
—Vulture, 17 Jan. 2024
Advertisement Esther is a lonely spinster who falls in love with George, an immigrant worker on the Panama Canal project who woos her through a series of romantic letters, penned and read by others, since Esther and George are illiterate.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Jan. 2024
Like Nicki Minaj, Maude Apatow, Chloe Cherry and Julia Fox: all of whom have emerged on the red carpet looking, some might say, like vengeful 19th-century spinsters.
—Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 28 Nov. 2023
On the strength of those performances, the Nebraska native — no, she was not born in Germany — was cast in 1963 as the spinster Lizzy in 110 in the Shade, based on N. Richard Nash’s play The Rainmaker.
—Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 July 2023
Who knows, maybe some of these spinsters just haven’t met the right part-time wedding d.j. yet?
—Danielle Kraese, The New Yorker, 14 June 2023
Vittoria, a spinster maid, has no social or marital or professional status to elevate her, no institutional power on her side, no particular neighborhood influence or leverage except for her emotive force, which is considerable: to Giovanna her seething is majestic.
—Elaine Blair, The New York Review of Books, 24 Sep. 2020
Of all the female characters in 19th-century literature, none remain quite as mystifying—or misunderstood—as Miss Havisham, the wedding dress–enshrouded, organizationally challenged spinster at the heart of Charles Dickens’s 1861 novel Great Expectations.
—Anna Fixsen, ELLE Decor, 18 Apr. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spinster.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Spinster.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spinster. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
spinster
noun
spin·ster
ˈspin(t)-stər
1
: a woman whose occupation is to spin
2
: an unmarried woman past the usual age for marrying
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