Mistress

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: mis=tress

CIDE DICTIONARY

Mistress, n. [OE. maistress, OF. maistresse, F. maîtresse, LL. magistrissa, for L. magistra, fem. of magister. See Master, Mister, and cf. Miss a young woman.].

•  A woman having power, authority, or ownership; a woman who exercises authority, is chief, etc.; the female head of a family, a school, etc.  [1913 Webster]

  "The late queen's gentlewoman! a knight's daughter!
  To be her mistress' mistress!"  [1913 Webster]
•  A woman well skilled in anything, or having the mastery over it.  [1913 Webster]

  "A letter desires all young wives to make themselves mistresses of Wingate's Arithmetic."  [1913 Webster]
•  A woman regarded with love and devotion; she who has command over one's heart; a beloved object; a sweetheart.  Clarendon.  [1913 Webster]
•  A woman filling the place, but without the rights, of a wife; a woman having an ongoing usually exclusive sexual relationship with a man, who may provide her with financial support in return; a concubine; a loose woman with whom one consorts habitually; as, both his wife and his mistress attended his funeral.  Spectator.  [1913 Webster]
•  A title of courtesy formerly prefixed to the name of a woman, married or unmarried, but now superseded by the contracted forms, Mrs., for a married, and Miss, for an unmarried, woman.  [1913 Webster]

  "Now Mistress Gilpin (careful soul)."  [1913 Webster]
•  A married woman; a wife.  [1913 Webster]

  "Several of the neighboring mistresses had assembled to witness the event of this memorable evening."  [1913 Webster]
•  The old name of the jack at bowls.  Beau. & Fl.  [1913 Webster]

To be one's own mistress, to be exempt from control by another person.

Mistress, v. i. 

 To wait upon a mistress; to be courting.  Donne.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Mistress, n.
1 a female head of a household.
2 a a woman in authority over others. b the female owner of a pet.
3 a woman with power to control etc. (often foll. by of: mistress of the situation).
4 Brit. a a female teacher (music mistress). b a female head of a college etc.
5 a a woman (other than his wife) with whom a married man has a (usu. prolonged) sexual relationship. b archaic or poet. a woman loved and courted by a man.
6 archaic or dial. (as a title) = MRS.

Idiom

Mistress of the Robes a lady in charge of the Queen's wardrobe.

Etymology

ME f. OF maistresse f. maistre MASTER

THESAURUS

Mistress

Dulcinea, abbess, beneficiary, best girl, cestui, cestui que trust, cestui que use, chatelaine, concubine, dame, deedholder, dowager, doxy, dream girl, duenna, educatress, feoffee, feudatory, first lady, gill, girl, girl friend, goodwife, governess, great lady, headmistress, homemaker, householder, housewife, inamorata, instructress, jill, jo, kept mistress, kept woman, lady, lady love, laird, landlady, landlord, lass, lassie, lord, lover, madam, master, matriarch, matron, mesne, mesne lord, mother superior, odalisque, old lady, owner, paramour, playmate, proprietary, proprietor, proprietress, proprietrix, rentier, schooldame, schoolmarm, schoolmistress, squire, titleholder, tutoress, unofficial wife, woman

ROGET THESAURUS

Mistress

Master

N master, padrone, lord, lord paramount, commander, commandant, captain, chief, chieftain, sirdar, sachem, sheik, head, senior, governor, ruler, dictator, leader, boss, cockarouse, sagamore, werowance, lord of the ascendant, cock of the walk, cock of the roost, gray mare, mistress, potentate, liege, liege lord, suzerain, sovereign, monarch, autocrat, despot, tyrant, oligarch, crowned head, emperor, king, anointed king, majesty, imperator, protector, president, stadholder, judge, ceasar, kaiser, czar, tsar, sultan, soldan, grand Turk, caliph, imaum, shah, padishah, sophi, mogul, great mogul, khan, lama, tycoon, mikado, tenno, inca, cazique, voivode, landamman, seyyid, Abuna, cacique, czarowitz, grand seignior, prince, duke, archduke, doge, elector, seignior, marland, margrave, rajah, emir, wali, sheik nizam, nawab, empress, queen, sultana, czarina, princess, infanta, duchess, margravine, czarevna, czarita, maharani, rani, rectrix, regent, viceroy, exarch, palatine, khedive, hospodar, beglerbeg, three-tailed bashaw, pasha, bashaw, bey, beg, dey, scherif, tetrarch, satrap, mandarin, subahdar, nabob, maharajah, burgrave, laird, collector, commissioner, deputy commissioner, woon, the authorities, the powers that be, the government, staff, etat major, aga, official, man in office, person in authority, sircar, sirkar, Sublime Porte, marshal, field marshal, marechal, general, generalissimo, commander in chief, seraskier, hetman, lieutenant general, major general, colonel, lieutenant colonel, major, captain, centurion, skipper, lieutenant, first lieutenant, second lieutenant, sublieutenant, officer, staff officer, aide-de-camp, brigadier, brigade major, adjutant, jemidar, ensign, cornet, cadet, subaltern, noncommissioned officer, warrant officer, sergeant, sergeant major, color sergeant, corporal, corporal major, lance corporal, acting corporal, drum major, captain general, dizdar, knight marshal, naik, pendragon, mayor, mayoralty, prefect, chancellor, archon, provost, magistrate, syndic, alcalde, alcaid, burgomaster, corregidor, seneschal, alderman, councilman, committeeman, councilwoman, warden, constable, portreeve, lord mayor, officer, dewan, fonctionnaire, admiral, admiralty, rear admiral, vice admiral, port admiral, commodore, captain, commander, lieutenant, ensign, skipper, mate, master, officer of the day, OD, navarch, da locum melioribus, der Furst ist der erste Diener seines Staats, the prince is the first servant of his state, lord of thy presence and no land beside.

Possessor

N possessor, holder, occupant, occupier, tenant, person in possession, man in possession, renter, lodger, lessee, underlessee, zemindar, ryot, tenant on sufferance, tenant at will, tenant from year to year, tenant for years, tenant for life, owner, proprietor, proprietress, proprietary, impropriator, master, mistress, lord, land holder, land owner, landlord, land lady, slumlord, lord of the manor, lord paramount, heritor, laird, vavasour, landed gentry, mesne lord, planter, cestui-que-trust, beneficiary, mortgagor, grantee, feoffee, releasee, relessee, devisee, legatee, legatary, trustee, holder of the legal estate, mortgagee, right owner, rightful owner, heir presumptive, heir apparent, heiress, inheritor, inheritress, inheritrix, reversioner, remainderman.

Libertine

N libertine, voluptuary, rake, debauchee, loose fish, rip, rakehell, fast man, intrigant, gallant, seducer, fornicator, lecher, satyr, goat, whoremonger, paillard, adulterer, gay deceiver, Lothario, Don Juan, Bluebeard, chartered libertine, adulteress, advoutress, courtesan, prostitute, strumpet, harlot, whore, punk, fille de joie, woman, woman of the town, streetwalker, Cyprian, miss, piece, frail sisterhood, demirep, wench, trollop, trull, baggage, hussy, drab, bitch, jade, skit, rig, quean, mopsy, slut, minx, harridan, unfortunate, unfortunate female, unfortunate woman, woman of easy virtue, wanton, fornicatress, Jezebel, Messalina, Delilah, Thais, Phryne, Aspasia, Lais, lorette, cocotte, petite dame, grisette, demimonde, chippy, sapphist, spiritual wife, white slave, concubine, mistress, doxy, chere amie, bona roba, pimp, procurer, pander, pandar, bawd, conciliatrix, procuress, mackerel, wittol.

Woman

N woman, she, her, female, petticoat, feminality, muliebrity, womanhood, womankind, the sex, the fair, fair sex, softer sex, weaker vessel, dame, madam, madame, mistress, Mrs, lady, donna belle, matron, dowager, goody, gammer, Frau, frow, Vrouw, rani, good woman, good wife, squaw, wife, matronage, matronhood, bachelor girl, new woman, feminist, suffragette, suffragist, nymph, wench, grisette, girl, sissy, betty, cot betty, cotquean, henhussy, mollycoddle, muff, old woman, hen, bitch, sow, doe, roe, mare, she goat, Nanny goat, tabita, ewe, cow, lioness, tigress, vixen, gynecaeum, estrogen, oestrogen, consanguinity &c, paternity, lesbian, dyke, female, she-, feminine, womanly, ladylike, matronly, maidenly, wifely, womanish, effeminate, unmanly, gynecic, gynaecic, Pron, she, her, hers, ', a perfect woman nobly planned, a lovely lady garmented in white, das Ewig-Weibliche zieht uns hinan, earth's noblest thing, a woman perfected, es de vidrio la mujer, she moves a goddess and she looks a queen, the beauty of a lovely woman is like music, varium et mutabile semper femina, woman is the lesser man.