meid
See also: méid
English edit
Etymology edit
Borrowed from Afrikaans meid, from English maid. Doublet of maid.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
meid (plural meide)
- (South Africa, offensive) A female domestic servant, usually non-white. [from 20th c.]
- (South Africa, offensive) A black woman. [from 19th c.]
Anagrams edit
Afrikaans edit
Etymology edit
From English maid (“female domestic servant”).
Noun edit
meid (plural meide)
Dutch edit
Etymology edit
From Middle Dutch meit, variant of meget, from Old Dutch *megith, *magath, from Proto-Germanic *magaþs. Doublet of maagd.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
meid f (plural meiden, diminutive meisje n or meiske n or meidje n)
- girl, lass
- De meiden hadden afgelopen zaterdag een zwemwedstrijd.
- The girls had a swimming match last Saturday.
- Goed gedaan, meid! ― Well done, girl!
- maid
- Synonyms: bode, deerne, dienstbode, dienstmaagd
- Commonly used as an address for female pets, especially female dogs.
- Brave meid! ― Good girl!
Usage notes edit
- Use in the singular may connote fortitude, bravery or acting like a grown-up, but it may also connote vulgarity or subservience due to the meaning “maid”. These connotations are much weaker in the plural, which can be used neutrally with little regard for context.
- Use for adult women (and to a lesser degree for older adolescent girls) is often considered patronising, which is especially true of the diminutives.
- The diminutive meidje is uncommon; the regular diminutive is meisje along with its variants meiske and meisie.
Derived terms edit
Descendants edit
Anagrams edit
Estonian edit
Pronoun edit
meid
Middle English edit
Noun edit
meid
- Alternative form of mede (“reward”)
Norwegian Nynorsk edit
Noun edit
meid m (definite singular meiden, indefinite plural meidar, definite plural meidane)
- (pre-1901 (Landsmål) or dialectal) alternative form of mei
Veps edit
Pronoun edit
meid