The word lady is a polite term for a woman, specifically the female equivalent to, or spouse of, a lord or gentleman, and in many contexts a term for any adult woman. Once relating specifically to women of high social class or status, over the last 300 years it has spread to embrace all adult women, though in some contexts may still be used to evoke a concept of "ladylike" standards of behaviour.
Read more about Lady: Etymology and Usage
Famous quotes containing the word lady:
“The first lady is, and always has been, an unpaid public servant elected by one person, her husband.”
—Lady Bird Johnson (b. 1912)
“A lady is smarter than a gentleman, maybe,
She can sew a fine seam, she can have a baby,
She can use her intuition instead of her brain,
But she can’t fold a paper in a crowded train.”
—Phyllis McGinley (1905–1978)
“‘Tis a sort of duty to be rich, that it may be in one’s power to do good, riches being another word for power.”
—Mary Wortley, Lady Montagu (1689–1762)