# courtesan

> English word · Noun · IPA /kɔːtɪˈzæn/ · frequency rank #43,584

## Definitions
1. A female prostitute, especially one with high-status or wealthy clients.
2. The mistress of a royal or noble.
3. A woman of a royal or noble court.
4. A fairy chess piece that can move to any adjacent square, that, when captured, the capturing piece is also eliminated.

## Etymology
Borrowed from Middle French courtisane, from Italian cortigiana, feminine of cortigiano (“courtier”), from corte (“court”), itself from Latin cohors.

## Easily confused with
- **courtesy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/courtesan-vs-courtesy)
- **Courtenay** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/courtenay-vs-courtesan)

## Common misspellings (13)
`ccourtesan`, `corutesan`, `couretsan`, `courrtesan`, `courteasn`, `courtesann`, `courtesna`, `courtessan`, `courtsean`, `courttesan`, `coutresan`, `cuortesan`, `ocurtesan`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/courtesan