maid

Compared meaning: a young unmarried woman (noun).

比较义项：年轻未婚女子（名词）。

• maid 本词

  An old, poetic word for a young unmarried woman, now mainly found in ballads and folk tales; in modern everyday English 'maid' usually means a female servant instead, which can mislead learners.

  指“年轻未婚女子”的一种旧式、诗意用词，如今主要见于民谣和民间故事；在现代日常英语里，maid 通常指“女仆”，容易让学习者产生误解。

  In the old ballad, a fair maid dwelled in the village, waiting for her true love.

  在那首古老的民谣里，一位美丽的少女住在村子里，等待着她的真爱。

• maiden

  The more common literary word for a young unmarried woman or girl; its sense survives today mainly in fixed phrases like 'maiden name', without the servant meaning that confuses 'maid'.

  指“年轻未婚女子或女孩”时更常用的文学用词；这一意思如今主要保留在“maiden name”这样的固定搭配中，没有 maid 那种容易混淆的“女仆”含义。

  She still goes by her maiden name at work, even years after getting married.

  即使结婚多年，她在工作中仍然使用自己未婚时的姓氏。

Maid and maiden can both mean a young unmarried woman, but this use is old and literary. In modern English, maid often means a female servant instead, not compared here. Maiden mostly survives in phrases like maiden name, not this adjective use.

在这一义项上，maid 和 maiden 都可以指“年轻未婚女子”，但都偏旧式、文学化用法；maid 在现代更常指“女仆”，这里不比较那个意思；maiden 的这一意思如今多保留在“maiden name”这类固定搭配里，这里不比较该搭配衍生出的“婚前的”这一形容词用法。