Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

handmaid

/ˈhændˌmeɪd/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.19 in modern English

Syllables
hand-maid
IPA
/ˈhændˌmeɪd/
15
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A maid that waits at hand; a female servant or attendant.

noun

A moth of the species Dysauxes ancilla.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English handemayde, hand-maide, handmaide, handmayd, hand mayde, hand-mayde, haundmaid, hondemayde, hondmaide, hond-mayde. By surface analysis, compound of hand + maid, the first component in the sense of "ready at hand".

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈhændˌmeɪd/

Inflected Forms

handmaids (plural) handmaiden (alternative) handmayd (alternative, obsolete)

Phrases

wait on someone hand and foot

Frequently Paired Words

wait on someone hand and foot

Synonyms

handmaiden servant

Homonyms

handmade

Questions

How do you pronounce handmaid?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈhændˌmeɪd/.
What does handmaid mean?
A maid that waits at hand; a female servant or attendant.
Where does handmaid come from?
It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce handmaid

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “handmaid”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈhændˌmeɪd/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “handmaid”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “handmaid” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.