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BNC: 39991 COCA: 37040

distaff

1 ENTRIES FOUND:
distaff /ˈdɪˌstæf/ Brit /ˈdɪˌstɑːf/ adjective
distaff
/ˈdɪˌstæf/ Brit /ˈdɪˌstɑːf/
adjective
Learner's definition of DISTAFF
always used before a noun formal
: of, relating to, or being a woman : female女性的；女方的
BNC: 39991 COCA: 37040

distaff

1 of 2

adjective

dis·​taff ˈdi-ˌstaf How to pronounce distaff (audio)
1
: female sense 1a(1)
distaff executives
2
: maternal sense 2
the distaff side of the family
compare spear

distaff

2 of 2

noun

plural distaffs ˈdi-ˌstafs How to pronounce distaff (audio)
-ˌstavz
1
a
: a staff for holding the flax, tow, or wool in spinning
b
: woman's work or domain
2
: the female branch or side of a family

Illustration of distaff

Illustration of distaff
  • distaff 1a D
  • and spindle S

Did you know?

The word distaff was first used for a short staff that held a bundle of fibers—of flax or wool, for example—ready to be spun into yarn or thread. Since spinning was a basic daily task customarily done by women, the distaff came to be the symbol for the work or domain of women. This symbolic use of the noun distaff dates back to the time of Chaucer and is found in several works by Shakespeare. Eventually distaff came to be used for the female branch of a family and then as an adjective, as in "the distaff side of the family."

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
An Elm Drive victory would give trainer Phil D’Amato a very successful weekend on the distaff side of the ledger. Bill Center, San Diego Union-Tribune, 4 Sep. 2021 The personal rivalries on the distaff side became apparent during the transition: When the Bushes won, Nancy did not invite Barbara to tour the living quarters until January 11 — much later than was traditional. NBC News, 21 Apr. 2018 Even if a separate, distaff canon is built, the atmosphere against which it’s being constructed is, gradually, becoming more integrated. Wesley Morris, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2017 And behind the camera, Scherfig has created something of a distaff utopia: both the book and the screenplay were written by women. Richard Lawson, VanityFair.com, 6 Apr. 2017
Noun
Other objects discarded along the way include a knife and its wooden handle; a birchbark container; a wooden needle; tinderbox; a wooden whisk; and a distaff, a tool that was used to hold wool as it was spun by hand. Ashley Strickland, CNN, 15 Apr. 2020 Twenty-four percent of distaff protagonists starred in dramas, while 21 percent were in comedies, 16 percent were in action features, 8 percent starred in science-fiction films and 5 percent led animated features. Katherine Schaffstall, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Jan. 2020 With the victory, Uni might have wrested the distaff turf championship from Sistercharlie, who earlier ran third in the Filly & Mare Turf. BostonGlobe.com, 1 Aug. 2019 Ivins was something like a cross between Kristofferson and Joplin: part good old boy (distaff division); part full-throated, tangle-haired star. BostonGlobe.com, 12 Sep. 2019 See More

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English distaf, from Old English distæf, from dis- (akin to Middle Low German dise bunch of flax) + stæf staff

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1633, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of distaff was before the 12th century
BNC: 39991 COCA: 37040

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