bridesmaid

bridesmaid — noun

1. a female member of the bride's wedding party who stands with her and helps her o

1.nounB2
Definition

a female member of the bride's wedding party who stands with her and helps her on the wedding day.

Example

Mei walked behind the bride as the youngest bridesmaid.

as + bridesmaid

At the beach wedding, Priya served as her cousin's bridesmaid.

serve as + bridesmaid

Common collocations
  • youngest bridesmaid
  • chief bridesmaid
  • one of the bridesmaids
Synonyms
  • attendant

    broader and less specific; it can refer to helpers for either the bride or the groom.

  • maid of honour

    the chief bridesmaid, not every bridesmaid in the group.

  • matron of honour

    the married chief bridesmaid.

Grammar Patterns

a bridesmaid

serve as a bridesmaid

one of the bridesmaids

Usage Note

Usually names one member of the bride's group, while the main helper is often called the 'maid of honour' or 'matron of honour'. It commonly appears in the plural because weddings often have several bridesmaids.

Common Mistakes

My brother was the bridesmaid at the wedding.
My brother was a groomsman at the wedding.
'bridesmaid' is the bride's female attendant.
Ella was the bride's maid in June.
Ella was a bridesmaid in June.
the standard noun is usually written as one word.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

For most weddings, 'bridesmaid' is the normal everyday word for one of the women helping the bride. 'Attendant' is broader and slightly more formal; it can describe helpers for either side, so it is less exact. 'Maid of honour' names the leading bridesmaid, usually the one with the main duties, and 'matron of honour' is used when that leading helper is married. In other words, every maid of honour is a bridesmaid, but not every bridesmaid is the maid of honour. For example, you can say 'Nadia was one of the bridesmaids,' but 'Nadia was the maid of honour' suggests she had the top role.

attendantmaid of honour ↗matron of honour

Common collocations

Nouns

  • bridesmaid dress
  • bridesmaid bouquet
  • bridesmaid photo

Phrases

  • be a bridesmaid
  • serve as a bridesmaid
  • ask someone to be a bridesmaid

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

This word is a compound of 'bride' and 'maid'. 'Bride' comes from Old English 'bryd', and 'maid' comes from Old English 'mægden', meaning a girl or young woman. English joined the two parts in Middle English to name a young woman who attends and helps the bride at a wedding, and that central meaning has stayed much the same.