Glossary
Female slave
English adds one word where Dutch has a single one, and that single Dutch word carries an ambiguity nobody intended.
What is a female slave?
Female slave is the English way to name the feminine form of slave: a woman who carries the serving side in an M/s relationship, with ownership as the starting point. English has no separate word for it. There, slave is the same word for everyone, so “female” gets added when the gender matters. Dutch does have a single word, slavin, and the difference sits in the Dutch suffix -in, which carries more than gender alone.
| Dutch term | slavin; the feminine form of slaaf that English lacks, see slave |
| Category | the feminine variant of slave, within M/s |
| Word formation | the stressed, non-productive Dutch suffix -in, as in boerin and heldin |
| The ambiguity | that suffix means either ‘female x’ or ‘wife of x’ |
| Dictionary | the Algemeen Nederlands Woordenboek lists slavin as a common-gender noun, feminine, plural slavinnen |
| Related | kajira, the Gor word for the same role |
What the suffix -in brings with it
Two meanings at once, and that is no small thing. The Algemene Nederlandse Spraakkunst, the standard grammar of Dutch, describes -in as a stressed, non-productive suffix attached to nouns for people, with two possible readings: ‘female x’ or ‘wife of x’. A heldin is a female hero, but a boerin can also be a farmer’s wife.
With slavin those two run together. The word can point at the role and it can point at a position toward someone else, and it does not say by itself which of the two you mean.
Non-productive means no new words are being formed with -in anymore. What exists, exists, and the list is short: boerin, gravin, heldin, vorstin, vriendin. The same grammar names in the same breath the female animal words that were built with it too. Leeuwin (lioness), berin (she-bear), wolvin (she-wolf). On a page about a role where ownership plays a part, that is company worth pausing on.
Why women choose this word
Because it is Dutch and because it does not stay neutral. A woman who says slavin instead of slave picks a word that carries her gender along instead of leaving it out, and for many women that is exactly the point: it is not about a function but about her.
The other side of it is up above. The word leaves open whether it is about a role or about a bond with one particular person, and that is a fine starting point for the conversation that has to happen anyway.
Where this fits on this site
I am Victor, a gigolo, at home in BDSM for over twenty-five years and trained as a psychotherapist. This word belongs to a relationship, and I work by the evening, so I am not looking for anyone. If you do want to hand something over within such an evening, with rules you set beforehand, the page on the BDSM date explains how that works.
Sources
- Algemene Nederlandse Spraakkunst, 12.4.2.2.6.3. Het achtervoegsel -in. Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, version 3.0, Geert Booij, June 2022; the section read word for word. Establishes that -in is a stressed and non-productive suffix attached to nouns for people; that two meanings are possible, ‘female x’ or ‘wife of x’, with heldin and boerin as the example of that difference; the series boerin, gravin, heldin, herderin, jodin, molenarin, vorstin, vriendin; and that female animal words were derived with -in too, such as apin, berin, leeuwin, tijgerin and wolvin.
- Algemeen Nederlands Woordenboek, entry slavin. Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, retrieved 4 August 2026. Supplies the grammatical data: noun, common noun, feminine gender, article de, meaning class person noun, plural slavinnen, syllable break sla.vin. Note: the article expressly carries no meaning profile yet, so this dictionary says nothing about what the word means. Only that it exists. That is more than for slavenveiling, which is not in it at all.
Related terms
Female slave is the feminine form of slave, the role where all the substance is explained.
- Slave. The base word, with the full word history and the Dutch charge it carries; English has no separate feminine form.
- M/s. The relationship this word is used within, with the research alongside.
- Master and mistress. The titles on the other side, with the same kind of feminine derivation.
- M-jo. The Japanese word that resembles this one but describes a disposition and not a relationship.
- Onderdanige. The broader role, which has no feminine form.
Frequently asked questions
What people still ask about this word.
What is a female slave?
A female slave is the feminine form of slave: a woman who carries the serving side in an M/s relationship, with ownership as the starting point. It is a chosen role that can be ended at any moment. English slave has no separate feminine form.
What is the difference between a slave and a female slave?
Only the gender marking. The role is the same and is explained on slave; English says female slave, where Dutch has the single word slavin with the suffix -in. That Dutch suffix does carry an ambiguity: according to the Algemene Nederlandse Spraakkunst, -in means both ‘female x’ and ‘wife of x’.
Is female slave in the dictionary?
The Dutch word for it, slavin, is, but without an explanation. The Algemeen Nederlands Woordenboek lists slavin as a common-gender noun, feminine, a person noun, plural slavinnen, and expressly notes that it does not carry a meaning profile yet. So the dictionary confirms that the word exists, not what it stands for in BDSM.
Where can you go with questions about the word female slave?
With Victor, a gigolo with over twenty-five years of experience in BDSM and a background as a psychotherapist. He is not looking for a female slave, he works by the evening, but the question of whether a word fits you and what exactly you agree on with it comes up with him often. You can send him a message with no obligation, or chat for free first.
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Still have questions about this word?
I am Victor. Whether a word fits you is something you only notice once you have said it out loud to someone who does not flinch at it. Want to do that? Send me a message. No obligation, and I will text you back at your own pace.