handmaid

H4A1N1D2M3A1I1D2
US/ˈhændˌmeɪd/

noun

A maid that waits at hand; a female servant or attendant.

Similar
handmaidenservant
OriginMiddle English handemayde →
UncommonScrabble 15
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Meanings

nounhandmaid (plural handmaids)

plural handmaids · alternative handmaiden · alternative obsolete handmayd

  1. historicalA maid that waits at hand; a female servant or attendant.
  2. A moth of the species Dysauxes ancilla.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounin a subordinate position

Similar
handmaidenservant
Broader
subordinatenesssubsidiarity

nouna personal maid or female attendant

Similar
handmaiden
Broader
maidmaidservanthousemaid
Also see
handmaidenservant

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Middle Englishhandemayde
  2. Englishhandmaid

Inherited from Middle English handemayde, hand-maide, handmaide, handmayd, hand mayde, hand-mayde, haundmaid, hondemayde, hondmaide, hond-mayde. By surface analysis, compound of hand + maid, the first component in the sense of "ready at hand".

More words from Middle English

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Czech služebná, služebnice
  • služebnámaid that waits at hand
  • služebnicemaid that waits at hand
Dutch dienstmaagd
  • dienstmaagdmaid that waits at hand
Finnish palvelijatar
  • palvelijatarmaid that waits at hand
German Dienerin, Zofe
  • Dienerinmaid that waits at hand
  • Zofemaid that waits at hand
Irish bansclábhaí
  • bansclábhaímaid that waits at hand
Latin pedisequa
  • pedisequamaid that waits at hand
Portuguese empregada, donzela
  • empregadamaid that waits at hand
  • donzelamaid that waits at hand
Scottish Gaelic ban-òglach
  • ban-òglachmaid that waits at hand
Spanish azafata, criada
  • azafatamaid that waits at hand
  • criadamaid that waits at hand
Ukrainian служни́ця
  • служни́ця (služnýcja)maid that waits at hand

Rhymes & wordplay

Sounds the same

handmade

Anagrams

Hamdanid
Cite this entry
APA

handmaid. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/handmaid

MLA

“handmaid.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/handmaid. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “handmaid,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/handmaid.

Source: handmaid on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.