1.
maid; housekeeper; domestic helper
A person hired to help with housework such as cleaning, cooking, and laundry. A polite and softened term compared to older words.
お手伝いさんが来る日だ。
Today is the day the housekeeper comes.
週に二回、お手伝いさんに掃除を頼んでいる。
We have a housekeeper come to clean twice a week.
共働きなので、お手伝いさんに家事を任せることにした。
Since we're both working, we decided to leave the housework to a housekeeper.
お手伝いさん is the standard polite term for a domestic helper or housekeeper in modern Japanese. The お〜さん pattern makes it respectful.
The older term 女中 is now considered offensive and should be avoided in modern usage.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- お手伝いさんを雇う (to hire a housekeeper)
- お手伝いさんに来てもらう (to have a housekeeper come)
- 住み込みのお手伝いさん (a live-in housekeeper)