goodwife
Americannoun
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Chiefly Scot. the mistress of a household.
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(initial capital letter) a title of respect for a woman.
noun
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the mistress of a household
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a woman not of gentle birth: used as a title
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of goodwife
Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; see origin at good, wife
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Paying small heed to those about her, the goodwife sipped the water, prayed quietly.
From Time Magazine Archive
She, too, had three attendants�her aunt, another goodwife who had borne 17 children, and her husband Ovila Dionne.
From Time Magazine Archive
And not long ago, in Holland, where uncle had to take a cargo, I came across one just like it, and the goodwife of the house told me it never failed them.
From Fairies Afield by Molesworth, Mrs. (Mary Louisa)
"I could not disarrange aught in sweeping them away!" deprecated the goodwife.
From Dreamers of the Ghetto by Zangwill, Israel
Customarily thou art so cloistered in that the goodwife declares thou forgettest to eat for three days together—and certes there is little thou canst eat when thou goest not abroad to buy provision!
From Dreamers of the Ghetto by Zangwill, Israel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
