Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun Same as
blue-stocking , 1.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Somewhat derisive A bluestocking; a literary woman.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun derogatory, dated A
bluestocking ; aliterary woman .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a woman having literary or intellectual interests
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
French, from bas stocking + bleu blue.
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Examples
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Visit www. basbleu.org or call 498-8949 for tickets or more information.
qms commented on the word basbleu
In the past we coded women by hue,
So color served as a character cue:
If she was a harlot
We painted her scarlet;
The high-minded we labeled basbleu.
It is hard to accept bluestocking as a term free of disapprobation, even though its origins seem harmless enough. There is something about “blue” as an emotive adjective that suggests shadows and chills.
Red is warm like blood arterial,
Blue, like the sky, cold and ethereal.
The sap of the vein
Marks with its stain
The basbleus, worn and immaterial.
It was not long ago (Feb. 4, 2014) that we had “bluenose” as the Word of the Day. While bluenose has a variety of meanings its use to characterize conduct always compels me to pause briefly to sort out whether the person cited is a busybody or a literary aspirant.
If she’s said to be blue, who knows,
Is the taint in the face or the hose?
Is she being a prude
Or pursuing étude?
A mild basbleu or a nasty bluenose?
April 7, 2014