debutante

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a young woman formally introduced into fashionable society, traditionally at a ball or reception

   The debutante attended her first formal society ball.

2. 2
   noun

   a woman making her first public appearance in a role, activity, or competition

   The debutante won her opening match on the professional tour.

Borrowed from French débutante, the feminine present participle of débuter, meaning to make a first appearance. English first used it for a young woman formally entering society, then extended it to women making other kinds of public debut.

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