odalisque

noun

Etymology: Borrowed from French odalisque, from Ottoman Turkish اوطهلق (odalık, “chambermaid”), from اوده (oda, “room”).

1. A female slave in a harem, especially one in the Ottoman seraglio.

   “When the young Mauretanians were his guests in the little houses before the town gates, and he was of a good humour, it would come about that he displayed his odalisques as others would their jewels.”

   “They grew fat, but successfully resisted the enticing odalisques with whom they were confronted.”

2. An erotic painting of a woman, usually nude, reclining in a luxurious or exotic setting.

   “Three years later, she added three more odalisques to her collection. Among the works she purchased in 1937 was an ink study that gave her insight into one stage in the evolution of the 1928 painting.”

3. A desirable or sexually attractive woman.