Meaning & use
pageant girl
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Meanings
nouncountable
A girl or young woman who takes part in a beauty contest, usually one with rounds of judging, fancy clothes and a stage show.
Grammar: Countable: say a pageant girl or two pageant girls; it names one competitor, not the event.
Patterns
- a pageant girl from somewhere
- compete as a pageant girl
- a former pageant girl
She was a pageant girl all through high school, traveling to contests almost every month.
The documentary follows three pageant girls and their families during one long summer.
As a pageant girl, he learned early how to walk confidently in front of a crowd.
nounbefore a noun
Used before another noun to describe things connected with child beauty contests, such as their style, clothes or culture.
Grammar: Attributive use: it comes directly before a noun, as in pageant girl dresses; it does not take a plural in this position.
Patterns
- pageant girl dresses
- the pageant girl world
- pageant girl culture
The shop sells pageant girl dresses in every color you can imagine.
Critics of pageant girl culture say the competitions push children to grow up too fast.
Her pageant girl look — big hair, bright lipstick — was easy to spot in the crowd.
Word forms
| plural | pageant girls |
|---|
Common combinations
- a former pageant girl
- The new mayor is a former pageant girl who still loves being on stage.
- compete as a pageant girl
- She competed as a pageant girl for six years before she quit.
- pageant girl dresses
- Pageant girl dresses are often covered in sequins and heavy beading.
- a young pageant girl
- A young pageant girl waved at the cameras from the back of the car.
- the pageant girl circuit
- Her mother drove her around the pageant girl circuit every weekend.
Synonyms and how they differ
- beauty queen
- Usually means an adult winner of a beauty contest, so it sounds more glamorous and more final than pageant girl.
- contestant
- The neutral, general word for anyone in a competition; use it when you do not want to focus on beauty contests.
- model
- A model is paid mainly to display clothes or products, while a pageant girl is judged in a contest.
Word family
Commonly confused: pageant girl or pagent?
pageant girl vs pagent
This is a common misspelling; the correct spelling is pageant, with ea before the g.
Practice
Which sentence uses "pageant girl" correctly?
Choose one answer.
"Pageant girl" is a countable noun for one competitor, so it fits as the subject of a singular verb like "won". Option B wrongly pairs a singular noun with "are", C uses an odd "of" phrase, and D treats the noun as a verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “pageant girl”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.