grass widow

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noun

a woman who is separated, divorced, or lives apart from her husband.

a woman whose husband is away from home frequently or for a long time, as on business or to pursue a sport or hobby.

Archaic.

a discarded mistress.
a woman who has borne an illegitimate child.

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TAKE JOY IN ACING THIS QUIZ ON “PRIDE” SYNONYMS

Hold your head up high as you embark on this quiz that explores some of the synonyms and meanings of “pride.”

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What does "dignity" mean?

showing self-respect

treating others with kindness

acting selfishly

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Origin of grass widow

1520–30; the first element perhaps originally alluding to a bed of grass, hay, or the like; compare Dutch grasweduwe,German Strohwittwe literally, straw-widow

OTHER WORDS FROM grass widow

grass·wid·ow·hood, noun

Words nearby grass widow

grass sorghum, grass sponge, grass style, grass tree, grass up, grass widow, grass widower, grassy, grate, G-rated, grateful

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use grass widow in a sentence

That was accomplished by cops such as the one whose picture was clutched so tightly by his widow on Sunday.
Funeral Protest Is Too Much for NYPD Union Boss|Michael Daly|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The one caveat: Asprey advises only buying butter made from grass-fed or pastured cows.
Bulletproof Coffee and the Case for Butter as a Health Food|DailyBurn|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
How many will be there for the young widow of Wenjian Liu, married only two months?
Any Outrage Out There for Ramos and Liu, Protesters?|Mike Barnicle|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Liu had been married just two months before and his wife now stood in this Brooklyn hospital, a sudden widow because of a madman.
Two Cops ‘Assassinated’ in Brooklyn|Michael Daly|December 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST

A tugboat improbably sits high on the bank, obscured by tall grass, a broken oil rig hangs over the water nearby.
The Congo's Forgotten Colonial Getaway|Nina Strochlic|December 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Do not the widow's tears run down the cheek, and her cry against him that causeth them to fall?
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
The grass had a delightful fragrance, like new-mown hay, and was neatly wound around the tunnel, like the inside of a bird's-nest.
Davy and The Goblin|Charles E. Carryl
She threw out her arms as if swimming when she walked, beating the tall grass as one strikes out in the water.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
The weed growing over every water, and at the bank of the river, shall be pulled up before all grass.
The Bible, Douay-Rheims Version|Various
Sometimes it was a young girl, again a widow; but as often as not it was some interesting married woman.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin

British Dictionary definitions for grass widow

grass widow

noun

a woman divorced, separated, or living away from her spouse

a woman whose spouse is regularly away for short periods

Word Origin for grass widow

C16, meaning a discarded mistress: perhaps an allusion to a grass bed as representing an illicit relationship; compare bastard; C19 in the modern sense

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with grass widow

grass widow

A woman who is separated from her husband, either by divorce or temporary absence. For example, She's a grass widow these days, with Herb traveling to golf tournaments all over the country. The expression dates from the 16th century, when it referred to the mother of an illegitimate child, grass presumably alluding to the open-air setting of the child's conception.