I even remember where I was when I learned this word. Just coming down off the overpass on Lagimodiere Blvd., heading north right before you hit Regent. I was young. (I remember the moment, but not how old I was.) It was dusk. We were heading home and my mom and I were playing the license plate game. You see the letters on someone's plates, you have to make a word using those three letters, in the order in which they appear. They don't have occur all together, but they do have to remain in order. For example, a plate with EDL would mean EDUCATIONAL was allowed, but not ELUCIDATE.
The car we saw had NEE. Easy. I said "Knee!". My mom said, "Or, nee." And she explained that when a woman is married and changed her name, she would be said to be First Name Married Name, NEE Maiden Name. As if a word for that actually exists.
- introducing the maiden name of a married woman, 1758, from Fr. née, fem. pp. of naître "born," from L. natus, pp. of nasci "to be born" (Old L. gnasci; see genus).
