Mona Lisa Look up Mona Lisa at Dictionary.com
by 1827 as the name of Leonardo's painting or its subject, Lisa, wife of Francesco del Giocondo (see Gioconda). Mona is said to be a contraction of madonna as a polite form of address to a woman, so, "Madam Lisa." The name is by 1923 (D.H. Lawrence) in reference to her enigmatic smile or expression.