n. & adj.
n. 1 a person (esp. a woman) who has never had sexual intercourse. 2 a (the Virgin) Christ's mother the Blessed Virgin Mary. b a picture or statue of the Virgin. 3 (the Virgin) the zodiacal sign or constellation Virgo. 4 colloq. a naïve, innocent, or inexperienced person (a political virgin). 5 a member of any order of women under a vow to remain virgins. 6 a female insect producing eggs without impregnation.
adj. 1 that is a virgin. 2 of or befitting a virgin (virgin modesty). 3 not yet used, penetrated, or tried (virgin soil). 4 undefiled, spotless. 5 (of clay) not fired. 6 (of metal) made from ore by smelting. 7 (of wool) not yet, or only once, spun or woven. 8 (of an insect) producing eggs without impregnation. virgin birth 1 the doctrine of Christ's birth without a human father. 2 parthenogenesis. virgin comb a honeycomb that has been used only once for honey and never for brood. virgin forest a forest in its untouched natural state. virgin honey honey taken from a virgin comb, or drained from the comb without heat or pressure. virgin queen an unfertilized queen bee. the Virgin Queen Queen Elizabeth I of England. virgin's bower a clematis, Clematis viticella. virginhood n.
[ ME f. AF & OF virgine f. L virgo -ginis ]