1. 1. An unmarried girl or woman.
   2. A virgin.
2. A machine resembling the guillotine, used in Scotland in the 16th and 17th centuries to behead criminals.
3. Sports.
   1. A racehorse that has never won a race.
   2. A maiden over.

1. Of, relating to, or befitting a maiden: a maiden blush.
2. Being an unmarried girl or woman: a maiden aunt.
3. Being a racehorse that has never won a race.
4. First or earliest: a maiden voyage; a maiden speech in the Senate.

[Middle English, from Old English mægden.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.