# working girl

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/working-girl
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

A female prostitute.

## Examples

- The film is about a working girl trying to leave the streets.
- She told the police she was a working girl to explain why she was on that corner at midnight.
- In the gritty novel, the protagonist, a working girl with a troubled past, dreams of escaping to a quieter life far from the city.

## Origin

From *working* + *girl*. The term is first recorded c. 1620, appearing in the published works of the translator Thomas Shelton.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.