Etymology

bee mother

Today it means: A queen bee (perceived as the mother of the hive) Full definition →

Old English bēomōdor
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The story

  1. Old English · calque ofbēomōdor“queen bee”
  2. English todaybee mother

From bee + mother, possibly as a calque of Old English bēomōdor (“queen bee”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.