/ ˈhændmeɪdn; NAmE / (also hand·maid / ˈhændmeɪd; NAmE /) noun
1.
( old-fashioned ) a female servant
2.
( formal ) something that supports and helps sth else :
Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences.
/ ˈhændmeɪdn; NAmE / (also hand·maid / ˈhændmeɪd; NAmE /) noun
1.
( old-fashioned ) a female servant
2.
( formal ) something that supports and helps sth else :
Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences.
Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary. Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне. 2005