diva

noun

di·​va ˈdē-və 

plural divas or dive ˈdē-(ˌ)vā 

1

a

music : prima donna sense 1

b

: prima donna sense 2

… if a team asks me to play somewhere else, I'm not going to be a diva about it.

—Ettore Lattanzio

2

: a usually glamorous and successful female performer or personality (see personality sense 4b)

a fashion diva

especially : a popular female singer

pop divas

The original diva and Queen Of Soul, Aretha Franklin, appears to have brought US President Barack Obama to tears (and then to his feet) with a stellar performance of (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman …

—Tom Williams

Synonyms

• goddess
• princess
• queen

Examples of diva in a Sentence

the reigning diva of daytime television

Recent Examples on the Web

Netflix film Maria, directed by Pablo Larraín from a Steven Knight screenplay, sees Jolie playing the American-Greek soprano in her final days in Paris, as the diva reckons with her identity and life after a glamorous and tumultuous life in the public eye. —Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 2 Dec. 2024

Videos and photos showed the three divas smiling in the theater, with Williams in costume. —Dan Heching, CNN, 23 Nov. 2024

Pablo Larraín Filmmaker, producer The prolific Chilean director and producer is back in the Oscar race this year with Maria, his ambitious Maria Callas biopic that stars Angelina Jolie as the iconic opera diva. —Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Nov. 2024

The domestic diva is also marking the holidays with a new collection for JCPenney that includes a patchwork quilt, kitchen and dinnerware and bath products, sold both in-store and online. —Erin Clements, People.com, 21 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Italian, literally, goddess, from Latin, feminine of divus divine, god — more at deity

First Known Use

1883, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

diva

noun

di·​va ˈdē-və 

plural divas or dive -ˌvā 

1

a

: PRIMA DONNA sense 1

b

: PRIMA DONNA sense 2

2

: a usually glamorous and successful female performer or celebrity

a fashion diva

especially : a popular female singer

pop divas

Etymology

from Italian diva "goddess," from Latin diva (same meaning)