ladyship

L1A1D2Y4S1H4I1P3
UK, US/ˈleɪ.di.ʃɪp/

noun

Term of respect for a woman of the peerage without using her title.

“"Her ladyship will be unable to attend tonight," he said, with a wink because he hadn't said why.”

OriginMiddle English ladyschipe →
UncommonScrabble 17
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Meanings

nounladyship (plural ladyships)

plural ladyships · alternative Ladyship

  1. Term of respect for a woman of the peerage without using her title.

    "Her ladyship will be unable to attend tonight," he said, with a wink because he hadn't said why.

    1 more example

    York got down and said very respectfully, "I beg your pardon, my lady, but these horses have not been reined up for three years, and my lord said it would be safer to bring them to it by degrees; but if your ladyship pleases, I can take them up a little more."

    [1877], Anna Sewell, “Earlshall”, in Black Beauty: […], London: Jarrold and Sons, […], →OCLC, part II, pages 104–105
  2. CommonwealthEnglandFormal form of address for a lady judge (as opposed to the informal "judge").

Origin

  1. Middle Englishladyschipe
  2. Englishladyship

From Middle English ladyschipe, ladyshipe; equivalent to lady + -ship.

More words from Middle English

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Finnish korkeus, ylhäisyys
  • korkeusTerm of respect
  • ylhäisyysTerm of respect
French La Dame, Madame
  • La DameTerm of respect
  • MadameTerm of respect
German Die Herrin
  • Die HerrinTerm of respect
Irish An Bhantiarna
  • An BhantiarnaTerm of respect
Italian La Signora
  • La SignoraTerm of respect
Latin Domina
  • DominaTerm of respect
Polish Pani
  • PaniTerm of respect
Portuguese A Senhora
  • A SenhoraTerm of respect
Russian све́тлость, ми́лость
  • све́тлость (svétlostʹ)Term of respect
  • ми́лость (mílostʹ)Term of respect
  • миле́ди (milédi)Term of respect
  • благородие (blagorodije)Term of respect
Scottish Gaelic A' Bhaintighearna
  • A' BhaintighearnaTerm of respect
Spanish La Señora
  • La SeñoraTerm of respect
Welsh Yr Arglwyddes
  • Yr ArglwyddesTerm of respect
Cite this entry
APA

ladyship. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ladyship

MLA

“ladyship.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ladyship. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ladyship,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ladyship.

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