procuress
Arranges illicit liaisons
A procuress is a woman who arranges sexual encounters for others, typically for payment—the female equivalent of a pimp or procurer.
The term appears most often in historical or literary contexts, where such figures facilitate prostitution or act as go-betweens for illicit liaisons.
The novel's procuress ran a brothel disguised as a boarding house.
The word carries strong connotations of moral corruption and exploitation.
Keeper of prostitutes
- madamFormal address for women
- bawdy houseCommercial venue for prostitution
- ElizabethanOf late 1500s England
- picaresqueRascally adventure narrative style
courtesan · demimonde · fallen women · disreputable · scandalous · theatrical · Hogarth
Prostitution manager
- madamFormal address for women
- brothelCommercial sex establishment
- traffickingIllegal transport for profit
- solicitationSeeking to obtain
vice · pimping · prostitution · pandering · sex trade · red-light district · escort · illicit
Agent connecting separate parties
- matchmakerArranger of romantic pairings
- arrangerOne who orders elements
- brokerTransaction intermediary for hire
- agentOne who acts independently
facilitator · liaison · supplier · connector · middleman · negotiator · coordinator · dealmaker
Crafty and calculating
- connivingSecretly planning wrongdoing
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- coercionPressured compliance through threats
- luringAttracting through enticement
grooming · seduction · enticement · persuasion · cunning · wiles · trickery · machination
One harmed by another
- coercionPressured compliance through threats
- abuseCruel or violent treatment
- traffickingIllegal transport for profit
- vulnerabilityOpenness to harm
predation · subjugation · control · degradation · oppression · power · intimidation · threats
bawd
Keeper of prostitutes
- madamFormal address for women
- bawdy houseCommercial venue for prostitution
- ElizabethanOf late 1500s England
picaresque · courtesan · demimonde · fallen women · disreputable · scandalous · theatrical · Hogarth
pimp
Prostitution manager
- madamFormal address for women
- brothelCommercial sex establishment
- traffickingIllegal transport for profit
solicitation · vice · pimping · prostitution · pandering · sex trade · red-light district · escort · illicit · sting
go-between
Agent connecting separate parties
- matchmakerArranger of romantic pairings
- arrangerOne who orders elements
- brokerTransaction intermediary for hire
agent · facilitator · liaison · supplier · connector · middleman · negotiator · coordinator · dealmaker · fixer
scheming
Crafty and calculating
- connivingSecretly planning wrongdoing
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- coercionPressured compliance through threats
luring · grooming · seduction · enticement · persuasion · cunning · wiles · trickery · machination · subterfuge
victim
One harmed by another
- coercionPressured compliance through threats
- abuseCruel or violent treatment
- traffickingIllegal transport for profit
vulnerability · predation · subjugation · control · degradation · oppression · power · intimidation · threats · duress
- military procurementPurchasing for armed forces
procure, procurement, procured, procures, procurer, procurements