Rare survivals of the original meaning of mistress do occur, as in The walls are full of pictures of famous people, all of them autographed to the mistress ofthe house, former movie star Shirley T e m pl e b l ack
Ra r e surviva ls of the origina l meaning of mistress do occur, as in : " The walls are full of pictures of f a m o u s p e o p l e , a l l o f t h e m autographed to the mistress of the house, former movie star Shirley T e m p l e B l a c k "
The first meaning of mistress today is"woman kept by a man for sexual purposes. "It is probably not without significance that the surviving pronunciation for the abbreviated spelling Mrs, hides the original derivation from 1 s s
The first meaning of mistress today is " woman kept by a man for sexual purposes." It is probably not without s i g n i f i c a n c e t h a t t h e surviving pronunciation f o r t h e a b b r e v i a t e d spelling Mrs, hides the original derivation from m i s t r e s s
Governor/Governess Although governor degenerated briefly in nineteenth-century Cockney slang, the term still refers to men who exercise a sovereign authority in a colony, territory, or state". A governess, on the other hand is chiefly" a nursemaid", operating in a realm much diminished from that of Queen Elizabeth I who was acknowledged to be the supreme majesty and governess of all persons"(OED
Governor/Governess Although governor degenerated briefly in nineteenth-century Cockney slang, the term still refers to men who “ exercise a sovereign authority in a colony, territory, or state". A governess, on the other hand, is chiefly "a nursemaid" , operating in a realm much diminished from that of Queen Elizabeth I, who was acknowledged to be "the supreme majesty and governess of all persons" ( OED )
In such words the female term does not take on an immoral sexual connotation, but, instead, adding the feminine ending makes it applicable to a more trivial or low ranking function than its male counterpart
In such words the female term does not take on an immoral sexual connotation, but , instead, adding the feminine ending makes it applicable to a more trivial or lowranking function t h a n i ts ma l e c o u n t e r p a r t
In the above example, the actual role denoted is different, but in some words denoting identical functions the feminine ending often carried the implications of less seriousness, as in poetess, sculptress, authoress Apparently for this reason, many of the older-ess words are rarely used today
In the above example, the actual role denoted is different, but in some words denoting identical functions the feminine ending often carried the implications of less seriousness, as in p o e t e ss, s c u l p tr e ss, a u t h o r e ss. Apparently for this reason, many of the older-ess words are rarely used today