Mistress

Mistress

Noun · /ˈmɪs.trɪs/

Definition

A woman who has authority or control; a woman in a long-term sexual relationship with a married man who is not her husband; a female teacher (especially in British English, particularly for secondary school teachers); historically, the feminine form of master — a woman who employs servants or has authority over others.

Origin

From Old French maistresse, the feminine form of maistre (master), from Latin magistra (feminine of magister). The word was the full formal title for women — Mistress — abbreviated to Mrs (pronounced missus) for married women and Miss for unmarried ones, from the 17th century onward. The reduction Mistress → Mrs → missus running parallel to Master → Mister. The sexual relationship sense developing from the idea of a woman having mastery over a man's affections, in use from the 16th century.