What does "mistress" mean?
A woman, specifically one with great control, authority or ownership.
Mistress
/ˈmɪstɹɪs/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A woman, specifically one with great control, authority or ownership.
- Grammar: mistress is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: abbess, amora, beneficiary, best girl.
- Useful contrasts: handmaid, handmaiden, handmaidens.
- Usage evidence: Between ourselves, he keeps a mistress.
How to use "mistress"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "mistress" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "mistress" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "mistress" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "mistress" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "mistress" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "abbess" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "mistress", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A woman, specifically one with great control, authority or ownership.
"She was the mistress of the estate-mansion, and owned the horses."
- 2 Used as the title of a married woman before her name. Now used only in the abbreviated form Mrs. archaic
"The sound of Mistress Affery cautiously chaining the door before she opened it, caused them both to look that way."
- 3 a woman master who directs the work of others wordnet
- 4 A female head of household.
- 5 Used as the title of a female dominant.
Show 13 more definitions
- 6 an adulterous woman; a woman who has an ongoing extramarital sexual relationship with a man wordnet
- 7 A female teacher.
"games mistress"
- 8 a woman schoolteacher (especially one regarded as strict) wordnet
- 9 The other woman in an extramarital relationship, generally including sexual relations.
- 10 A dominatrix.
"As part of BDSM play they can enhance the domineering tread of a mistress or hobble the steps of a slave."
- 11 A woman well skilled in anything, or having the mastery over it.
"A letter desires all young wives to make themselves mistresses of Wingate's Arithmetic."
- 12 A woman regarded with love and devotion; a sweetheart.
"he could not forbear putting his horse out of the way , and rode with his mistress behind him round about it"
- 13 A married woman; a wife. Scotland
"Several of the neighbouring mistresses […] had assembled to witness the event of this memorable evening."
- 14 A respectful mode of address to a woman. archaic
- 15 The jack in the game of bowls. obsolete
"Faith, keep a bachelor still, and go to bowls, sir, Follow your mistress there, and prick and save, sir; For other mistresses will make you a slave, sir"
- 16 A female companion to a master (a man with control, authority or ownership).
- 17 Female equivalent of master. feminine, form-of
- 18 Female equivalent of mister. feminine, form-of
Verb
- 1 Of a woman: to master; to learn or develop to a high degree of proficiency. rare, transitive
"These films give a glimpse of women on the way to mistressing their own destiny."
- 2 To act or take the role of a mistress. intransitive
"[…] housewifery, maternity, charity, the life conventual, the chatter of a court, the mistressing of a great house […]"
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Between ourselves, he keeps a mistress."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "mistress"?
Common synonyms include: abbess, amora, beneficiary, best girl, bit on the side, cestui.
How do you use "mistress" in a sentence?
Between ourselves, he keeps a mistress.
How do you pronounce "mistress"?
Pronounced /ˈmɪstɹɪs/.
Etymology
From Middle English maistresse, from Old French maistresse (whence French maîtresse), feminine of maistre (“master”). By surface analysis, mist(e)r + -ess.