Mermaid
noun ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 A mythological creature with a woman's head and upper body, and a tail of a fish.
"Search the depth, & ſee that variety of Sea monſters & fiſhes, Mare-maids, Sea men, Horſes, &c. which it affords."
- 2 half woman and half fish; lives in the sea wordnet
- 3 Coloured a brilliant turquoise.
"a mermaid smoothie"
- 4 A prostitute. obsolete
"A Gentleman or an honeſt Cittizen, ſhall not Sit in your pennie-bench Theaters, vvith his Squirrell by his ſide cracking nuttes; nor ſneake into a Tauerne vvith his Mermaid; but he ſhall be Satyr'd and Epigram'd vpon, and his humour muſt run vpo'th Stage: […]"
Example
More examples"The legend says that she was a mermaid."
Etymology
From Middle English mermayde (“maid of the sea”), from mere (“sea, lake”) + maid, equivalent to mer- + maid. Cognate with Dutch meermeid (“mermaid”), Middle High German mermaget, mermeit (“mermaid”, > German Meermagd, Meermädchen (“mermaid”)). Compare Old English meremenn, meremennen, meremenin (“mermaid, siren”).