Old Maid
Children's card game — pair off cards and get rid of them all; whoever's left with the Old Maid loses.
🌤indoor
What is Old Maid?
Old Maid is a Victorian children's card game usually played with a dedicated illustrated deck (a standard deck with one queen removed also works). All cards are dealt out; players form and discard pairs, then draw a card from the neighbour on their left. The queen with no pair (the Old Maid) can never be discarded — whoever is left holding her at the end loses.
Quick facts
Category
Card Games
Type
Individual
Players
2–8
Where played
indoor
Country of origin
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
Estimated origin
Victorian England (dedicated deck marketed from 1860s)
Olympic
No
Popularity
global
Sources & provenance
Last verified 2026-08-24.verified