damsel in distress

/ˈdæm.zəl ɪn dɪˈstɹɛs/

damsel in distress noun: a young woman perceived as being helpless in a dangerous situation and requiring rescue.

Noun

damsel in distress (plural damsels in distress)

A young woman perceived as being helpless in a dangerous situation and requiring rescue.
- 'Sort of damsel in distress,' said the romantic Strangways. 'Good show. According to the CIA she's a corker.'1954, Ian Fleming, “The Undertaker's Wind”, in Live and Let Die, London: Pan Books, published 1957, page 190
- I am not a pretty girl / That is not what I do / I ain't no damsel in distress / And I don't need to be rescued1995, Ani DiFranco, “Not a Pretty Girl”, in Not a Pretty Girl

young woman perceived as being in a dangerous situation.: संकट में युवती saṅkaṭ mẽ yuvtī

young woman perceived as being in a dangerous situation.: فَتَاة فِي مِحْنَة

plural	damsels in distress

Calque of French demoiselle en détresse, from the classic theme in many dramatic forms.

What does damsel in distress mean?: Damsel in distress means a young woman perceived as being helpless in a dangerous situation and requiring rescue.
What is damsel in distress in Hindi?: Damsel in distress in Hindi is संकट में युवती (saṅkaṭ mẽ yuvtī). See Damsel in distress meaning in Hindi.
What part of speech is damsel in distress?: Damsel in distress is a noun.
How do you pronounce damsel in distress?: Damsel in distress is pronounced /ˈdæm.zəl ɪn dɪˈstɹɛs/.
What is the plural of damsel in distress?: The plural of damsel in distress is damsels in distress.

Adapted from Wiktionary: damsel in distress (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Cite this entry: “damsel in distress.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/damsel_in_distress. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.