| 释义 |
heiress|ˈɛərɪs|
[f. heir n. + -ess. Introduced app. in 17th c.]
A female heir. Also fig.
1659B. Harris Parival's Iron Age 14 The Heiress of the house of York. Ibid. 84 His first wife was the Princesse, who was heiresse to Sexan. 1690Evelyn Diary 20 Dec., One Johnson, a knight, was executed at Tyburn for being an accomplice with Campbell..in stealing a young heiress. 1749Fielding Tom Jones xiv. v, [He] would have had us consider ourselves as highly as if we had been the richest heiresses. 1769Blackstone Comm. iv. xv. 208 Their forcible abduction and marriage; which is vulgarly called stealing an heiress. 1878B. Taylor Deukalion i. iii, Heiress of gifts interpreted as woe.
b. Comb., as heiress-hunting, heiress-portioner, etc.
1861W. Bell Dict. Law Scotl. s.v. Executors, Heiresses-portioners who succeed ab intestato to equal portions..of the heritable estate. 1886Baring-Gould Crt. Royal I. vii. 111 He must go about the country heiress-hunting.
Hence ˈheiresshood, -ship (nonce-wds.), the state or position of an heiress.
1862T. A. Trollope Marietta I. 78 This heiress-ship was known to be a very important matter. 1884Mrs. Houstoun Caught in Snare II. viii. 98 The fact of her heiresshood. 1889Mrs. Oliphant Poor Gentl. III. vi. 109 Mab with her heiress-ship had been thrown at his head. |