- Archaic a title given to a woman in authority or the mistress of a household: now only in personifications: Dame Care
- an elderly or matronly woman
- in Great Britain
- the legal title of the wife of a knight or baronet
- the title of a woman who has received an order of knighthood: used always with the given name
- Slang a woman or girl
Origin of dameMiddle English ; from Old French ; from Classical Latin domina, lady, feminine of dominus, a lord: see dominate
- Used formerly as a courtesy title for a woman in authority or a mistress of a household.
- a. A married woman; a matron.b. An elderly woman.
- Often Offensive Slang A woman.
- Chiefly British a. A woman holding a nonhereditary title conferred by a sovereign in recognition of personal merit or service to the country.b. The wife or widow of a knight.c. Used as the title for such a woman.
Origin of dameMiddle English, from Old French, from Latin domina, feminine of dominus, lord, master; see dem- in Indo-European roots.