Meanings
plural manstresses
- slangA male equivalent of "mistress"; a male object of one's affections who lies outside of one's primary relationship.
Tom and Nicole had been married for several years, but it was well known that she was keeping a manstress on the side.
1 more example
4. Thou shalt commit adultery, or preadultery: If it feeleth good, do it. Particularly if you're French, and keeping a mistress or manstress is expected.
1997 March 25, Edward P. Moser, “Words to Live By”, in The Wall Street Journal, New York, N.Y.: Dow Jones & Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 24 Oct 2020
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
Blend of man + mistress, not attested before 1980.
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
manstress. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manstress
“manstress.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manstress. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “manstress,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manstress.
Source: manstress on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.