old maid (redirected from old maids)

old maid

n.

1. Offensive A woman who has remained single beyond the conventional age for marrying.

2. Informal A person regarded as being primly fastidious.

3. Games

a. A card game in which the player who holds a designated card at the end is the loser.

b. The loser of this game.

4. Chiefly Southern U.S. See zinnia.

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old-maidish (ldmdsh) adj.

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old maid

n

1. a woman regarded as unlikely ever to marry; spinster

2. Informal a prim, fastidious, or excessively cautious person

3. (Group Games / Card Games) a card game using a pack from which one card has been removed, in which players try to avoid holding the unpaired card at the end of the game

old-maidish  adj

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	old maid - an elderly unmarried woman           spinster unmarried woman - a woman who is not married
	2.	old maid - any of various plants of the genus Zinnia cultivated for their variously and brightly colored flower heads old maid flower, zinnia flower - a plant cultivated for its blooms or blossoms genus Zinnia - genus of annual or perennial plants of tropical America having solitary heads of brightly colored flowers white zinnia, Zinnia acerosa - subshrub with slender woolly stems and long narrow leaves and flower heads with white rays; southern United States and northern Mexico little golden zinnia, Zinnia grandiflora - subshrub having short leafy stems and numerous small flower heads with nearly round yellow-orange rays; Arizona south to Mexico and east to Kansas
	3.	old maid - commonly cultivated Old World woody herb having large pinkish to red flowers Cape periwinkle, Catharanthus roseus, cayenne jasmine, Madagascar periwinkle, red periwinkle, rose periwinkle, Vinca rosea, periwinkle Catharanthus, genus Catharanthus - small genus of erect annual or perennial herbs native to Madagascar; widely naturalized in the tropics; formerly included in genus Vinca herb, herbaceous plant - a plant lacking a permanent woody stem; many are flowering garden plants or potherbs; some having medicinal properties; some are pests
	4.	old maid - the loser in a game of old maid also-ran, loser - a contestant who loses the contest
	5.	old maid - a card game using a pack of cards from which one queen has been removed; players match cards and the player holding the unmatched queen at the end of the game is the loser (or `old maid') card game, cards - a game played with playing cards

Translations

old maid n (pej) → vecchia zitella

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old maid n (pej) → vecchia zitella