Is the word in use today?

I believe that you are lying or being, as you often are, selective in your memory. As I recall, I've had to, more than once, point out that you were being silly in your expressions of offence at what ESLs had written.




Presenting yourself as such a magnanimous, knowing individual would be more realistic if you were to offer some reason for your "assessment" of Miller's comment. You didn't and you won't; 'nuff said.

Not for NaE, McTag. Is it not the same for BrE?

Is "bluestocking" a possible alternative. That implies not only virginity but intellectual excellence and social position. As one might expect as lying on your back with your legs open, or on your hands and knees with your arse in the air, getting shagged is rather simple and not very posh.

Or, at least, I shouldn't have thought so.

Possibly some types of men will try to maintain that the word has a sense of being degrading but that might be merely a devious method of easing their path to the expression of their glory and ensuring that it costs little. A serious delusion imo.

I would view a spinster in the pub as "interesting".

Words gain meaning independent of the wishes and machinations of types of men or women, Spendi.

Yes I know JT. I think the gain in popularity on which the gain in meaning is dependent is due to the words being better suited than the ones they replace or more amusing and often a combination of both. The street is the source.

A few under test at the moment are "clabby" (exceptionally pink), "off-piste" ( adultery), "tottle" (an underwater air biscuit), "clean sheet" (not conceding a goal in a footie match), etc etc.

It's a Darwinian survival of the aptest process. Language is democratic.

I've invented a few new words myself but none have caught on yet.

It's bit old-fashioned, but does not I think carry any pejorative undertone when used simply on its own.

In my church, whan I was young, I remember the minister reading out the banns (intimations of marriage), which contained the description, e.g., "There is a purpose of marriage between XXX, batchelor,....... and YYY, spinster, residing at ZZZ Street in this parish.

That's interesting, McTag. In my time, which is similar to yours, the term spinster never was used in that sense, that situation. I suppose that using it like that in a church situation gave it a certain respectability.

Asking in a strictly neutral language sense, was there no intimation in out of church society that these were ladies that were, "past their expiry date"?

Sorry--wrong thread.

It could easily be used in that sense, of course, especially if one referred to people as "old spinsters"

However to me it indicates simply a woman of marriageable age, who is not married.

And by "marriageable age", I suppose the generally accepted interpretation of that is "childbearing age".

The word is not popular here now, somewhat out of fashion, most single women preferring to be known as just that.

I think the usage relates to females past childbearing age who eschew being under control or seek to exercise it according to their own lights.

Harriet Martineau was a gallant spinster.

McTag has expanded the scope of the meaning of the word.

Backgroud: church.

One particular church. The Catholic Church doesn't use "spinster" or "bachelor" in their banns reading. As far as I know anyway.