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Synonyms for distaff
| Grammar : Adj, noun |
| Spell : dis-taf, -tahf |
| Phonetic Transcription : ˈdɪs tæf, -tɑf |
Top 10 synonyms for distaff Other synonyms for the word distaff
Définition of distaff
Origin :- Old English distæf "stick that holds flax for spinning," from dis- "bunch of flax" (cf. Middle Low German dise, Low German diesse "a bunch of flax on a distaff;" see bedizen) + stæf "stick, staff" (see staff).
- A synonym in English for "the female sex, female authority in the family," since at least the late 1400s, probably because in the Middle Ages spinning was typically done by women. St. Distaff's Day was Jan. 7, when "women resumed their spinning and other ordinary employments after the holidays" [OED].
- adj feminine
- noun femininity
- They may find they have more tow on their distaff than they know how to spin.
- Extract from : « The White Company » by Arthur Conan Doyle
- Thus are they represented on a medal, each with a distaff in her hand.
- Extract from : « Roman Antiquities, and Ancient Mythology » by Charles K. Dillaway
- Then Wainamoinen took the pieces of her distaff and set to work.
- Extract from : « Finnish Legends for English Children » by R. Eivind
- The improvement on the distaff and spindle was the spinning wheel.
- Extract from : « Textiles » by William H. Dooley
- What followed the distaff and spindle in the development of spinning?
- Extract from : « Textiles » by William H. Dooley
- This distaff, which I have taken at random, decides the fate of all who are born while I am spinning it.
- Extract from : « Laboulaye's Fairy Book » by Various
- She answered the third without hesitation, that it was a Distaff.
- Extract from : « Eastern Tales by Many Story Tellers » by Various
- The door was open, and he saw a girl at work with her distaff.
- Extract from : « Zanoni » by Edward Bulwer Lytton
- “There is meetness in all things,” said the old lady, picking up her distaff.
- Extract from : « The White Rose of Langley » by Emily Sarah Holt
- The distaff had to be recovered before the question could be considered.
- Extract from : « The White Rose of Langley » by Emily Sarah Holt
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