handmaiden

• 名词，指女性的私人侍女或女仆，也指处于从属或辅助地位的人或事物。

A noun referring to a female personal attendant or servant, or something that is in a subordinate or supporting role.

1. Subordinate support roleC1formal

   Something that exists to serve or support a more important entity; a subsidiary or auxiliary.

   辅助角色

   • In many political systems, the media is seen as a handmaiden to democracy.
   • The study of linguistics is often treated as a handmaiden to literary criticism.
   • These small data sets are merely a handmaiden to the larger research project.
   • Art has often been the handmaiden of religion throughout history.

   同义词adjunctappendageauxiliaryhandmaidinstrumentservantsubsidiarytool

2. Female personal attendantB2formalbritish

   A female servant or attendant who assists a lady or mistress, especially in personal tasks.

   侍女

   • The queen's handmaiden helped her dress for the ceremony.
   • In the novel, the handmaiden is secretly loyal to her mistress.
   • She served as a handmaiden to the duchess during the royal tour.
   • The handmaiden brought tea and arranged the cushions.

   同义词attendantmaidmaidservant