A gun moll is a female companion of male professional criminal, and in some contexts the term more specifically suggests that the gun moll handles a firearm. When the term came into usage in the first decade of the 20th century, "gun" was not derived from the firearm, but from the Yiddish word meaning "thief," variously transliterated into English as ganef, gonif, goniff, or ganof, itself derived from Hebrew "Ganav" (גנב). However, this distinction gradually disappeared, especially when such women became especially associated with gangsters noted for their frequent use of guns. "Moll" derives from Molly, a diminutive of Mary, used as a euphemism for whore or prostitute and attested at least since 17th century England.