virginals
- noun
- /ˈvɜrdʒɪnəlz/
- Archaic
:
virginal
- During the festival, only virginals were allowed to participate in the ancient ceremony.
Examples
-
The virginals danced gracefully at the ball.
-
The poet wrote verses about the beauty and innocence of the virginals in the village.
-
In the old tale, the group of virginals gathered by the river to sing and dance.
-
In the past, many noble families prized their virginals highly.
-
In the old tale, the group of virginals gathered by the river to sing and dance.
-
During the festival, only virginals were allowed to participate in the ancient ceremony.
-
The poet wrote verses about the beauty and innocence of the virginals in the village.
Synonyms
389
3.4
A person who has never had sex
126
8.8
A young woman who is not married
112
9.9
An unmarried girl or young woman often mentioned in old stories
53
8.2
A French word for a young or unmarried woman
41
4.8
A girl or young woman
35
3.8
A woman who is about to get married and often has a party before the wedding
9
1.0
A woman who is not married
1
9.9
A young unmarried woman in old stories
A young unmarried woman in old stories
A young unmarried woman who appears in old stories
Compounds
- Archaic
A rectangular instrument without legs with keys like a harpsichord, often played by women in the 1500s and 1600s
Surface Forms
Morphology
virginals = virginal (transparent) = virgin + al + s
The plural is a regular inflection of 'virginal' used as a noun meaning 'a virgin'; the sense is directly related to 'virgin'.
Etymology
Virginals once meant 'young unmarried women' and comes from the root virgin, from virgo, meaning 'maiden' or 'young woman'. So calling someone a virginals meant they were a 'virgin' or maiden, which explains the word's old use for unmarried girls.