n.1 (Dame) a (in the UK) the title given to a woman with the rank of Knight Commander or holder of the Grand Cross in the Orders of Chivalry. b a woman holding this title.
2 Brit. a comic middle-aged woman in modern pantomime, usu. played by a man.
3 archaic a mature woman.
4 US sl. a woman.
Phrases and idioms:
dame-school hist. a primary school kept by an elderly woman.
Etymology: ME f. OF f. L domina mistress