variants
also handmaid
as in housekeeper
a female domestic servant
the princess was intensely shy, and allowed only her handmaiden to enter her chambers
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of handmaiden
That is Esther and her handmaiden in his painting, sure as life.
—
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 19 July 2025
That’s for the courts to say, not Trump’s handmaidens in cruelty.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 18 July 2025
There’s a New Spirituality in Pop Music June 7, 1987
As religion and crypto-religion were locked in mortal combat, the AIDS plague was sweeping across gay communities like a firestorm, to the complete indifference of the federal government and their Christian handmaidens.
—Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2025
And what the project means by the term—turning the Department of Energy into a handmaiden of the coal, oil and natural gas industry—betrays not only the taxpayer but science itself.
—Megha Satyanarayana, Scientific American, 25 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for handmaiden
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 19 July 2025
That’s for the courts to say, not Trump’s handmaidens in cruelty.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 18 July 2025
There’s a New Spirituality in Pop Music June 7, 1987
As religion and crypto-religion were locked in mortal combat, the AIDS plague was sweeping across gay communities like a firestorm, to the complete indifference of the federal government and their Christian handmaidens.
—Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2025
And what the project means by the term—turning the Department of Energy into a handmaiden of the coal, oil and natural gas industry—betrays not only the taxpayer but science itself.
—Megha Satyanarayana, Scientific American, 25 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for handmaiden
Recent Examples of Synonyms for handmaiden
Noun
-
Among the witnesses who will likely be called to testify are a housekeeper who claims to have sold fentanyl to Richins on three occasions and the man with whom Richins was allegedly having an affair.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Each villa at this 2,200-acre seaside property outside Montego Bay comes with dedicated staff—including a butler, chef, and housekeeper—giving it a home-away-from-home feel.—
Carley Rojas Avila,
Travel + Leisure,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Helen's illiterate mother, who worked as a maid for an affluent white family, poured all her hopes into her single angel of a daughter.—
Gail Sheehy,
Vanity Fair,
20 Feb. 2026
-
As teens, boys apprenticed on farms or with artisans, and girls as dairy maids.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Handmaiden.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/handmaiden. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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