handmaid

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A woman servant who personally attends someone, especially in earlier times.

   Grammar: A countable noun with a plural: handmaids.

   Patterns

   • a handmaid to someone

   The queen was dressed by her handmaids.

   In the old story, a handmaid carried the lady's letter.

   The handmaid brought water to the princess.

2. 2nouncountablefigurativeliterary

   Something that serves or supports something more important.

   Grammar: Used figuratively, often with to: a handmaid to science.

   Patterns

   • a handmaid to something

   Art should not be a handmaid to politics.

   Early engineers saw technology as a handmaid of industry.

   The author treated language as a handmaid to thought.

Word forms

Common combinations

handmaid to

Medicine was a handmaid to religion.

queen's handmaid

A queen's handmaid carried her train.

faithful handmaid

She was a faithful handmaid.

handmaid of the Lord

The old text called her the handmaid of the Lord.

royal handmaid

A royal handmaid lit the candles.

Synonyms and how they differ

maid

Maid is the everyday word for a female servant, while handmaid is older and suggests a personal attendant.

servant

Servant is general and can be male or female, while handmaid is specifically a woman.

attendant

Attendant covers many kinds of helpers, whereas handmaid is a personal servant of a woman.

lady-in-waiting

A lady-in-waiting is a noblewoman who accompanies a queen, higher in rank than a handmaid.

Word family

handmaiden noun

a variant form of handmaid

maid noun

a female servant

maiden noun

an unmarried young woman, in old usage

Commonly confused: handmaid or handmade?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “handmaid”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words