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

My Little Puny sparkles in a double role as the prince and the fairy godmother, but Tabitha is a scene-stealing vamping diva as the evil stepmother. —Barry Levitt, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025

Her last stroke of luck is to be adopted by the Snow Queen herself: Marion Cotillard, playing the most manipulative diva since Norma Desmond. —Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 16 Feb. 2025

Meanwhile, back on the dance floor, a diva named La Flaca (Saray Rebolledo) has the power to control death itself. —Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 2 Feb. 2025

The two form a bond through Molina’s recounting of the plot of a silver-screen musical starring diva Ingrid Luna (Jennifer Lopez). —Ew Staff, EW.com, 23 Jan. 2025

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

Rhymes for diva

• iva
• shiva
• viva
• gingiva
• oliva
• yeshiva

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)