In England, a title prefixed to the name of any woman whose husband is not of lower rank than a baron, or whose father was a nobleman not lower than an earl
If you say that a woman is a lady, you mean that she behaves in a polite, dignified, and graceful way. His wife was great as well, beautiful-looking and a real lady
People sometimes refer to a public toilet for women as the ladies. At Temple station, Charlotte rushed into the Ladies
a woman of refinement; "a chauffeur opened the door of the limousine for the grand lady"
a woman of the peerage in Britain a polite name for any woman; "a nice lady at the library helped me
A woman of wealth, of station, or of rank Verstegan says, It was anciently written Hleafdian [? hlæfdige], contracted first into Lafdy, and then into Lady Laf or Hláf (loaf) means food in general or bread in particular, and dig-ian or dug-an, to help, serve, or care for; whence lady means the `bread-server ' The lord (or loaf-ward) supplied the food, and the lady saw that it was properly served, for the ladies used to carve and distribute the food to the guests Another etymology is Hláf-weardie and loaf-wardie, where ie stands for a female suffix like-ina ine; as Carolus, female Carol-ina, or Carol-ine; Joseph, Joseph-ina or Joseph-ine; Czar, Czar-ina, etc etc Ladies retire to the drawing-room after dinner, and leave the gentlemen behind This custom was brought in by the Norsemen The Vikings always dismissed all women from their drinking parties (S Bunbury )
Noun (Plural: Ladies) Prefix used for female members of the nobility in the United Kingdom