[f. LAND sb. + LADY sb. Cf. landlord.]
1. ‘A woman who has tenants holding from her’ (J.); † fig. a mistress. rare.
a. 1536. Tindale, Expos. Matt. v. Wks. (1573), 210/1. Let thy wife visit thy Landladye three or four tymes in a yeare, wyth spised cakes … and such like.
1600. Dekker, Fortunatus, Wks. 1873, I. 84. Great landlady of hearts pardon me.
1687. Miége, Gt. Fr. Dict., II. s.v. Landlady, I am the Tenant, and she is my Landlady.
Mod. Our landlady lives next door.
2. The hostess of an inn; the mistress of a lodging- or boarding-house.
1634. Nicholas Papers (Camden), II. 56. She called for the Landlord and Landlady of the Lodging.
1667. Pepys, Diary, 7 Oct. There was so much tearing company in the house that we could not see the landlady.
1734. Berkeley, Lett. to T. Prior, 30 April, Wks. 1871, IV. 227. The landlady of the lodging must … be obliged to furnish linen.
1824. Scott, Redgauntlet, let. xii. We soon reached the Shepherd’s Bush, where the old landlady was sitting up waiting for us.
1857. Dickens, Lett. (1880), II. 30. We have a very obliging and comfortable landlady.
1886. Ruskin, Præterita, I. vii. 209. The early widowed landlady of the King’s Head Inn.
3. Sc. One’s hostess, the wife of one’s host or entertainer. ? Obs.
1815. Scott, Guy M., iii. The circumstances of the landlady [Mrs. Bertram, wife of the laird] were pleaded to Mannering … as an apology for her not appearing to welcome her guest.
Hence (nonce-wds.) Landladydom, the realm of landladies. Landladyhood, -ship, the position or dignity of a landlady. Landladyish a., resembling or characteristic of a landlady.
1854. Tait’s Mag., XXI. 349. The end of my landladyship is drawing nigh.
1862. J. Skinner, Lett., 12 July, in Life, xi. (1884), 209. Maggie was in all the dignity of landladyhood.
1864. Realm, 30 March, 8. Mrs. Falconer as Dame Quickly displayed a proper amount of landladyish indignation at her corpulent customer’s misdeeds.
1890. Baring-Gould, Pennycomequicks, 194. When I come on landlady-dom.
