grass widow

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.

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

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use grass widow in a sentence

Samuel could not imagine his grass-widow, Mrs. De Ferriac, causing any very righteous blows on her own account.
Flappers and Philosophers | F. Scott Fitzgerald
It was very kind of him, of course, but I wish he would let me alone, and send his old flowers to the grass widow.
Polly the Pagan | Isabel Anderson
But she did not fancy Simla in the season as a grass-widow, and had had quite enough of being alone.
Forty-one years in India | Frederick Sleigh Roberts
In weeding, the beer gardener should be careful to distinguish between true widow's weeds and grass widow's weeds.
The Foolish Almanak | Anonymous
So the grass widow is back in Rome, and Peppi, you say, is cocking his eye at her?
Polly the Pagan | Isabel Anderson

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

Origin of 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.

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