chatelaine

[ shat-l-eyn; French shahtuh-len ]

noun

, plural chat·e·laines [shat, -l-eynz, shaht, uh, -, len].

1. the mistress of a castle.
2. the mistress of an elegant or fashionable household.
3. a hooklike clasp or a chain for suspending keys, trinkets, scissors, a watch, etc., worn at the waist by women.
4. a woman's lapel ornament resembling this.

chatelaine

/ ˈʃætəˌleɪn; ʃɑtlɛn /

noun

1. (esp formerly) the mistress of a castle or fashionable household
2. a chain or clasp worn at the waist by women in the 16th to the 19th centuries, with handkerchief, keys, etc, attached
3. a decorative pendant worn on the lapel

Word History and Origins

Origin of chatelaine¹

From the French word châtelaine, dating back to 1835–45. See chatelain

Example Sentences

Daisy found it impossible to keep her eyes off her ‘pitty aunty’, but attached herself like a lap dog to the wonderful chatelaine full of delightful charms.

From Literature

Her assigned role as the “chatelaine of a neocolonial pleasure palace” discomforts her, because it smacks of presiding over a plantation in the antebellum South.

From Washington Post

When they marry, Max takes the second Mrs. de Winter to Manderley, his family estate on the stormy English coast, where his first wife, Rebecca, held court as a legendary beauty, hostess and chatelaine.

From Washington Post

The chatelaine uprooted some ferns, which she “arranged so as to conceal me,” then left her guest to sleep on the ground.

From New York Times

When Sonya, the underappreciated chatelaine of the estate, pronounces herself “unattractive,” “not pretty” and also “plain,” she is making fine distinctions but also loathing herself harder as all three.

From New York Times

Related Words

• girlfriend
• paramour
• sweetheart