the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
n. See portress.
The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
n. A female porter or keeper of a gate.
Word Usage
"We have spoken of the admirable way in which Mr. Cruikshank has depicted Irish character and Cockney character; English country character is quite as faithfully delineated in the person of the stout porteress and her children, and of the"