handmaiden

noun

hand·​maid·​en ˈhan(d)-ˌmā-dᵊn How to pronounce handmaiden (audio)
variants or less commonly handmaid
ˈhan(d)-ˌmād How to pronounce handmaiden (audio)
Synonyms of handmaidennext
1
: a personal maid or female servant
2
: something whose essential function is to serve or assist
criticism is not the enemy of art but rather its handmaiden— Gary Michael

Synonyms

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of handmaiden in a Sentence

the princess was intensely shy, and allowed only her handmaiden to enter her chambers
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
During the Cold War, the military-industrial complex was driven by corporations that operated as handmaidens to the state. — Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2025 That is Esther and her handmaiden in his painting, sure as life. — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 19 July 2025 That’s for the courts to say, not Trump’s handmaidens in cruelty. — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 18 July 2025 There’s a New Spirituality in Pop Music June 7, 1987 As religion and crypto-religion were locked in mortal combat, the AIDS plague was sweeping across gay communities like a firestorm, to the complete indifference of the federal government and their Christian handmaidens. — Marc Weingarten, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for handmaiden

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of handmaiden was in the 14th century

Rhymes for handmaiden

See All Rhymes for handmaiden

Browse Nearby Words

handmade
handmaiden
handmaid moth
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Handmaiden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/handmaiden. Accessed 14 Aug. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Kids Definition

handmaiden

noun
hand·​maid·​en -ˌmād-ən How to pronounce handmaiden (audio)
variants also handmaid
-ˌmād How to pronounce handmaiden (audio)
: a female servant or attendant
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Hypercorrections: Are you making these 6 common mistakes?

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Using Bullet Points ( • )

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE

12 Words Whose History Will Surprise You

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Our Best Historical Slang Terms

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
retro style illustration of a tv with shapes and lightening bolts coming from the screen
Pop Culture Vocab Quiz “Embiggen,” “regift,” “friend zone” a...
See All