handmaiden

== English == === Etymology === From Middle English hande mayden, handmaiden, hand mayden, hand-mayden, handmayden, hondemaiden, hond maydyn, hoondmaydyn. By surface analysis, hand +‎ maiden. Sense 2 is an allusion to Canadian writer Margaret Atwood's novel The Handmaid's Tale (1985), in which "handmaids" are women who serve the male commanders in a patriarchal dystopia. === Pronunciation === === Noun === handmaiden (plural handmaidens) Alternative form of handmaid. (derogatory) A cisgender woman who supports transgender rights. For more quotations using this term, see Citations:handmaiden. ==== Derived terms ====