The word grisette (sometimes spelled grizette) has referred to a French working-class woman from the late 17th century and remained in common use through the Belle Époque era, albeit with some modifications to its meaning. It derives from "gris" (French for grey), and refers to the cheap grey fabric of the dresses these women originally wore. The 1694 edition of the "Dictionnaire de l'Académie française" described a grisette as simply "a woman of lowly condition". By the 1835 edition of the dictionary, her status had risen somewhat. She was described as: