Crossword Genius

Mature woman, her youth sadly finished (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

lady

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'mature woman' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'her youth sadly finished' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'youth' could be 'lad' (I've seen this before) and 'lad' is located in the answer.
A single letter 'y' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for lady that I've seen before include "Title for a knight's wife" , "Noble" , "Lord's wife - peeress's title" , "Luck, for example" , "See 19" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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