n. & v.
--n.
1. (as a title usu. Queen) a female sovereign etc., esp. the hereditary ruler of an independent State.
2 (in full queen consort) a king's wife.
3 a woman, country, or thing pre-eminent or supreme in a specified area or of its kind (tennis queen; the queen of roses).
4 the fertile female among ants, bees, etc.
5 the most powerful piece in chess.
6 a court card with a picture of a queen.
7 sl. a male homosexual, esp. an effeminate one.
8 a an honoured female, e.g. the Virgin Mary (Queen of Heaven). b an ancient goddess (Venus, Queen of love).
9 a belle or mock sovereign on some occasion (beauty queen; queen of the May).
10 a person's sweetheart, wife, or mistress.
11 (the Queen) (in the UK) the national anthem when there is a female sovereign.
--v.tr.
1. make (a woman) queen.
2 Chess convert (a pawn) into a queen when it reaches the opponent's side of the board.
Phrases and idioms:
Queen-Anne in the style of English architecture, furniture, etc., in or about Queen Anne's time, the early 18th c. Queen Anne's lace cow-parsley. queen bee 1 the fertile female in a hive.
2 the chief or controlling woman in an organization or social group. queen-cake a small soft cake often with raisins etc. queen dowager the widow of a king. queen it play the queen. queen mother the dowager who is mother of the sovereign. queen of the meadows meadowsweet. queen of puddings a pudding made with bread, jam, and meringue. queen-post one of two upright timbers between the tie-beam and principal rafters of a roof-truss. Queen's bench see BENCH. queen's bishop, knight , etc. Chess (of pieces which exist in pairs) the piece starting on the queen's side of the board. Queen's bounty see BOUNTY. Queen's colour see COLOUR. Queen's Counsel see COUNSEL. the Queen's English see ENGLISH. Queen's evidence see EVIDENCE. Queen's Guide see GUIDE. Queen's highway see HIGHWAY. queen-size (or -sized) of an extra-large size, usu. smaller than king-size. Queen's Messenger see MESSENGER. queen's pawn Chess the pawn in front of the queen at the beginning of a game. Queen's Proctor see PROCTOR. Queen's Scout see SCOUT(1). Queen's speech see SPEECH. queen's-ware cream-coloured Wedgwood.
Derivatives:
queendom n. queenhood n. queenless adj. queenlike adj. queenship n.
Etymology: OE cwen f. Gmc; cf. QUEAN