A single woman, especially one who has never been married; also a party or celebration for a woman getting married.
From 'bachelor' (a single man) plus the feminine suffix '-ette' (small or female version). 'Bachelor' comes from Old French meaning a young man seeking to be a knight. The word emerged in the early 20th century.
The term 'bachelorette' as a celebration is surprisingly modern—before the 1960s, only men had wild bachelor parties, but feminism and changing attitudes meant women got their own pre-wedding celebrations!
Diminutive feminine suffix (-ette) applied to 'bachelor.' Historically marks unmarried women as a novelty category distinct from unmarried men, reinforcing gender-specific social categorization of relationship status.
Use 'single woman' or name-specific contexts; 'bachelorette' is fine when referring to the specific TV show format or self-identified use.
["unmarried woman","single person","individual"]
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