Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A woman member of a royal family other than the monarch, especially a daughter of a monarch.
  • noun A woman who is a ruler of a principality.
  • noun A woman who is a hereditary ruler; a queen.
  • noun A noblewoman of varying status or rank.
  • noun The wife of a prince.
  • noun A woman regarded as having the status or qualities of a princess.
  • adjective Designed to hang in smooth, close-fitting, unbroken lines from shoulder to flared hem.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A female sovereign; a woman of princely rank.
  • noun The daughter of a sovereign: a female member of a royal family: in this sense a title of courtesy. Compare prince, 4.
  • noun A size of roofing-slate 24 inches long by 14 inches wide. Compare duchess, 2.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A female prince; a woman having sovereign power, or the rank of a prince.
  • noun The daughter of a sovereign; a female member of a royal family.
  • noun The consort of a prince.
  • noun the eldest daughter of a sovereign.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The female monarch, or wife of a ruler, of a principality.
  • noun The daughter (or granddaughter) of a king, queen, emperor, empress, prince, or another princess.
  • noun A type of court card in the Tarot pack, coming between the 10 and the prince (Jack)
  • noun A beloved girl considered dainty; used as a term of endearment
  • noun derogatory A young girl or woman considered vain, spoiled or selfish; a prima donna
  • noun A tinted crystal marble used in children's games.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a female member of a royal family other than the queen (especially the daughter of a sovereign)

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English princesse, from Old French, feminine of prince, prince; see prince.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

prince +‎ -ess

Support

The word princess has been adopted in honor of Esther Ramirios, the Princess of My Heart.

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Examples

  • So I think it's been a very carefully judged compromise, that Camilla's status is now clearly right at the top of the royal tree, but people are aware that there's a great deal of sensitivity attached to the title princess of Wales.

    CNN Transcript Feb 10, 2005 2005

  • There's a precedent for the title princess consort.

    CNN Transcript Feb 10, 2005 2005

  • So I think it's been a very carefully judged compromise, that Camilla's status is now clearly right at the top of the royal tree, but people are aware that there's a great deal of sensitivity attached to the title princess of Wales.

    CNN Transcript Feb 13, 2005 2005

  • Though, when he announced his engagement, of course, Prince Charles said his future wife would be known by the title princess consorts.

    CNN Transcript Mar 21, 2005 2005

  • There's a precedent for the title princess consort.

    CNN Transcript Feb 13, 2005 2005

  • Unquestionably Sanherib gave his son the title princess to increase the young man's prestige, because at that time and in that place the feminine title of sovereignty was more highly honoured than the masculine.

    The Dominant Sex: A Study in the Sociology of Sex Differentiation, by Mathilde and Mathias Vaerting; translated from the German by Eden and Cedar Paul 1923

  • Actress Mandy Moore will be the voice of the title princess the trade magazine also reports.

    Slice of SciFi 2009

  • Also from the same publisher, a translated retelling of the story of the frog prince in which the princess is the prettiest girl in high school and the frog the geek infatuated with her.

    Slush Pile: Artesia, Erstwhile, Frog Prince, Rostam » Comics Worth Reading 2009

  • "Can you at least produce proof that the princess is alive?"

    Florence of Arabia (Part II) 2004

  • "Can you at least produce proof that the princess is alive?"

    Florence of Arabia (Part II) 2004

  • It’s been really bugging me but I’m seeing a lot of my tiktok page with straight men calling their girlfriends “pillow princesses”. Correct me if I’m wrong, but is that not an exclusive term for lesbian women?

    Can you use the term “pillow princess” on straight people? PepperedDemons 2025

  • Pillow Princess: A common term amongst lesbian circles and queer women, pillow princesses are a type of bottom who don’t reciprocate some or all sexual acts. Pillow princesses are usually femme (though not always), often lesbian, and range from sweet to bratty and everywhere in between. Many self-identify as a pillow princess, but it is also sometimes used as a pejorative. Always use caution when referring to someone else as a pillow princess and make sure it’s OK with them first.

    What Is a Pillow Princess? Everything You Need to Know About Queer Stone Identities Sara Youngblood Gregory 2024

  • “A pillow princess is someone who exclusively wants to be the receiving partner in sexual activity,” Dr. Ruth L. Schwartz, psychologist, lesbian relationship coach and co-founder of Conscious Girlfriend, puts it bluntly.

    'Pillow Princess': Legit Sexuality Or Harmful Stereotype? Gina Tonic 2024

  • So I was with some non nursing friends and was reading a staffing text out loud that listed open needs for the month and stated that “princess shifts are available”

    Could the term “Princess Shift” be seen as offensive? TurtedHen 2025

  • How do you guys classify a princess shift? In my area (Southern California) it mostly means any 4-hour, but I've seen people use it to mean 6-hour or pre-closing.

    "Princess Shift" 2025

  • Princess shifts at my store are 6 hours. Occasionally a princess close with show up, but not very often. That's usually preclose.

    Princess shifts tenachiasaca 2025

  • We call shorter night shifts princess shifts sometimes because so much of the work - for inpatient nurses anyways - is in the first couple hours of the 12hrs. Whether it's a princess shift or not depends on if it's easier.

    Dr. Trisha PL I The Night Doctor (@dr.tpl) on Threads 2025

Comments

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  • Okay, I'm officially going down the hall to hork in the ladies' room. I just overheard my boss tell a visitor, "And this is my cat... She's my little girl. She's my princess."

    HORK!!!

    July 23, 2008

  • Hork seems to be the word of the month. How are we going to indicate disgust this August?

    July 24, 2008

  • It's so onomatopoetic. Which I probably spelled wrong.

    Edit: I changed the spelling because I'm obsessive-compulsive. Leave me alone.

    July 24, 2008

  • chained_bear, just think "o no, tomato!" to remember how to spell onomatopoeia. (er, which someone already listed there. i do it as well!)

    July 24, 2008

  • I think I'll just think there's a ma in the middle. :) After I hork at the idiocy of my boss fussing publicly over a picture of her cat like it's a damn human.... *eye roll*

    July 24, 2008

  • Cat?! Princess!?

    *hhhhhhhhhhhhhhork*

    July 24, 2008

  • at least it wasn't dressed as one.

    (i think this kitty epitomizes most human sentiments on the matter.)

    July 24, 2008

  • Wow. Major horkfest occurring here.

    July 24, 2008

  • Watch out, c_b. Next thing you know, your boss will be hiring her princess to work with you.

    Jenn: I say we take votes on the horkword for August 08.

    July 29, 2008

  • how about *ralph*?

    July 29, 2008

  • Wasn't "ralph" April's word?

    July 30, 2008

  • Sorry, April.

    July 30, 2008