fishwife

American  

[fish-wahyf] / ˈfɪʃˌwaɪf /

noun

plural

fishwives

1. a woman who sells fish.

2. a coarse-mannered, vulgar-tongued woman.

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fishwife British  

/ ˈfɪʃˌwaɪf /

noun

1. a woman who sells fish

2. a coarse scolding woman

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Other Word Forms

• fishwifely adjective

Etymology

Origin of fishwife

First recorded in 1375–1425, fishwife is from the late Middle English word fisshwyf. See fish, wife

Example Sentences

If the history of the hoax is an ancient and labyrinthine city, then Young has explored every alleyway, gossiped with every fishwife, drunk in every bar in town.

From Slate • Nov. 30, 2017

Her high-profile roles have been peppered with projects like a concept album about the Pendle Witch Trials, playing Hamlet on stage - and now writing a play about a Hull fishwife.

From BBC • Oct. 25, 2017

A Canadian waitress who swears like a fishwife goes on holiday to Boracay.

From New York Times • Jun. 1, 2016

In Part 2, we turn to the story of glamorous and inaccessible Mathilde—who, we learn, was born in France, as Aurélie, her mother a fishwife in Nantes, her father a stonemason.

From The New Yorker • Nov. 2, 2015

Mordred said, in his equivocal musical voice, that he could understand a fishwife, but not a fish mistress.

From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White