noun
mistress
MIHS-trihs
noun
1
A woman having an ongoing romantic or sexual relationship with a man who is married to someone else.
"The scandal broke when his mistress went to the press."
2
A woman in a position of authority or control, or the female head of a household.
"She was the mistress of the estate for over thirty years."
How to Use Mistress
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishTraditionally, the female counterpart of "master" — either a woman in charge, or a man's secret romantic partner outside marriage.
Common pairings
keep a mistress
mistress of the house
Word Forms
mistressed past tense, Mistresses plural, mistresses singular
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Etymology
From Old French maistresse, the feminine form of maistre, "master."