lady bountiful

lady bountiful
noun (plural lady bountifuls or ladies bountiful)
Usage: often capitalized L&B
Etymology: after Lady Bountiful, character in The Beaux' Stratagem (1707), play by George Farquhar died 1707 British dramatist born in Ireland
: a woman notable for or conspicuous in her benevolences

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pl. Lady Bountifuls, Ladies Bountiful.
1. a wealthy lady in George Farquhar's The Beaux' Stratagem, noted for her kindness and generosity.
2. (sometimes l.c.) a woman of noteworthy generosity or charity.

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Lady Bountiful
1. The charitable great lady of a district
2. An ironic name for a patronizingly generous female do-gooder
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Main Entry:bounty
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Lady Bountiful noun (also without caps; often derogatory)
A rich and generous woman, often applied to one who is ostentatiously or offensively so (from a character in Farquhar's The Beaux’ Stratagem)
• • •
Main Entry:lady

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Lady Bountiful,
a kind and gracious, usually well-to-do, woman.
[< Lady Bountiful, a character in George Farquhar's play The Beaux' Stratagem]

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a woman who engages in ostentatious acts of charity, more to impress others than out of a sense of concern for those in need
Origin:
early 19th cent.: from the name of a character in Farquhar's The Beaux' Stratagem (1707)

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Lady Bountiful [Lady Bountiful] (BrE usu disapprov)
a woman, especially an upper-class woman, who likes to appear generous with her money or time. The name comes from a character in the play The Beaux’ Stratagem (1707) by the Irish writer George Farquhar (1678–1707)

She likes to help out at the school and play Lady Bountiful.


Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Lady Bountiful — ► Lady Bountiful a woman who engages in ostentatious acts of charity. [ORIGIN: from the name of a character in Farquhar s The Beaux Stratagem (1707).] Main Entry: ↑bountiful …   English terms dictionary

  • Lady Bountiful — n. [after a character in Farquhar s comedy The Beaux Stratagem (1707)] a charitable woman, esp. one who gives ostentatiously …   English World dictionary

  • Lady Bountiful — a woman who enjoys showing people how rich and kind she is by giving things to poor people. I ve got a lot of clothes that they might make use of but I m worried they they might see me as some sort of Lady Bountiful …   New idioms dictionary

  • lady bountiful — /leɪdi ˈbaʊntəfəl/ (say laydee bowntuhfuhl) noun a woman noted for her generosity, which is often slightly ostentatious. {from the character Lady Bountiful in the play The Beaux Stratagem (1707) by George Farquhar, who used her wealth to help the …  

  • Lady Bountiful — pl. Lady Bountifuls, Ladies Bountiful. 1. a wealthy lady in George Farquhar s The Beaux Stratagem, noted for her kindness and generosity. 2. (sometimes l.c.) a woman of noteworthy generosity or charity. * * * …   Universalium

  • Lady Bountiful — La′dy Boun′tiful n. pl. Lady Bountifuls, Ladies Bountiful 1) lit. a wealthy lady in George Farquhar s The Beaux Stratagem (1707), noted for her kindness and generosity 2) (sometimes l.c.) a woman of noteworthy generosity or charity …   From formal English to slang

  • Lady Bountiful — a woman who engages in ostentatious acts of charity. [C19: from the name of a character in Farquhar s The Beaux Stratagem (1707).] → bountiful …   English new terms dictionary

  • Lady Bountiful — noun a) A rich and generous woman. b) An over patronising woman, showing off her wealth by acts of overwhelming generosity …   Wiktionary

  • lady bountiful — Synonyms and related words: Maecenas, Santa Claus, almoner, almsgiver, angel, assignor, awarder, backer, bestower, cheerful giver, conferrer, consignor, contributor, donator, donor, fairy godmother, feoffor, financer, funder, giver, grantor,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • bountiful — ► ADJECTIVE 1) abundant. 2) giving generously. ● Lady Bountiful Cf. ↑Lady Bountiful DERIVATIVES bountifully adverb …   English terms dictionary

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