knights are celebrated in fairy tales for rescuing damsels in distress
Recent Examples on the WebIn downtown Fort Worth, at the confluence of the Trinity’s West Fork and Clear Fork, naturalists have documented 57 species of butterflies and moths, 24 kinds of fish, 23 species of dragonflies and damsel flies, 49 species of birds, and 35 types of ants, wasps and bees.—Hollace Ava Weiner, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 May 2024 But the damsel isn’t in distress, the monster isn’t so bad, and some raunchy jokes may go over kids’ heads (but will likely delight parents).—Chris Snellgrove, EW.com, 16 Apr. 2024 With an all-star cast including Angela Bassett, Robin Wright, and Nick Robinson, the film turns the damsel in distress trope on its head, featuring mystical elements, epic battles, and a princess who must look within in order to save herself.—Travis Bean, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024 And every year some 200 Renaissance fairs are held across dozens of US states and Canada, where participants come dressed as knights, jesters, damsels, pirates or even goblins, wizards, witches and fairies.—Eva Rothenberg, CNN, 17 Mar. 2024 In the feature, Brown plays Princess Elodie, an outwardly typical damsel in distress who learns to fight for herself.—Abid Rahman, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Mar. 2024 Mulligan still does her best to imbue damsel with a deeper melancholy, but the script doesn’t give her much to work with.—Janey Tracey, EW.com, 29 Feb. 2024 Best of all, there isn’t a damsel in distress in sight.—Radhika Seth, Vogue, 22 Feb. 2024 Name a doomed damsel, and a swath of grungy blue is sure to be plastered somewhere nearby.—Emily Leibert, Allure, 25 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'damsel.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English damesel, from Anglo-French dameisele, from Vulgar Latin *domnicella young noblewoman, diminutive of Latin domina lady
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