wench
Americannoun
-
wenches
plural
-
a country lass or working girl.
The milkmaid was a healthy wench.
-
Usually Facetious. a girl or young woman.
-
Archaic. a strumpet.
verb (used without object)
-
wenches,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wenched,
past participle, past
-
wenching
present participle
noun
-
a girl or young woman, esp a buxom or lively one: now used facetiously
-
archaic a female servant
-
archaic a prostitute
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
wenchsimple
-
wenchessimple
-
have wenchedperfect
-
has wenchedperfect
-
am wenchingprogressive
-
are wenchingprogressive
-
is wenchingprogressive
-
have been wenchingperfect progressive
-
has been wenchingperfect progressive
Past
-
wenchedsimple
-
had wenchedperfect
-
was wenchingprogressive
-
were wenchingprogressive
-
had been wenchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wench
1250–1300; Middle English, back formation from wenchel, Old English wencel child, akin to wancol tottering, said of a child learning to walk; akin to German wankeln to totter
Explanation
Wench used to mean young girl, so if you find someone describing a lovely wench in Shakespeare, it means a lovely girl. Wench comes from Middle English, and was a common word for girl, child, or servant. Over time it came to mean mainly serving girls, as in a bar wench, who serves drinks at a tavern. Eventually it came to mean prostitute. If you find wench in a love poem from the 16th century, think of it as an informal version of maiden. But if someone called you a wench last week, you should be insulted.
Vocabulary lists containing wench
Kindred
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Taming of the Shrew
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Merchant of Venice
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
“The word wench is definitely not something that medieval people would use for a woman, especially in public, because that was a really insulting thing to call her,” Mitchell said.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 27, 2018
Other changes have elicited fewer complaints than the deleted wench auction.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2018
Bosley Crowther of The Times called her character “a selfish, ambitious, fickle wench whose tender and lovable qualities might be compared to those of a threshing machine.”
From New York Times ● Jul. 19, 2017
To control it, he’ll use a “sip-and-puff” device that enables him to use his breath to move the rudder and operate a wench that controls the sails.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 3, 2017
She was Illyrio's favorite, a fair-haired, blue-eyed wench of sixteen who chattered constantly as she worked.
From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin
In medieval times, waitresses were called wenches, because the word waitress did not exist.
From New York Times ● Jan. 29, 2018
Because the funny thing about the witch trials is this: it wasn’t, really, those hysterical little girls and so-called temptress wenches who did all this damage to America’s soul.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 30, 2015
Then it’s off to the ocean, where the crew will test her systems in deep saltwater, including the sonar and over-the-side gear, like wenches and cranes.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 22, 2014
He samples Pee-wee Herman, and goes out of his way to say "gluteus maximus" and "wenches" instead of ruder, more common rapper words.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 29, 2012
This is a hard world in winter for wolves and wenches and poor rogues like me.”
From The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 4 (of 25) by Robert Louis Stevenson
Commissioned at 14, James Wolfe had earned a reputation as a priggish martinet who scorned wining and wenching but relished the meanest chores in his scramble for rank.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Merry Wives of Windsor, Shakespeare's farce in which wenching Falstaff involves himself in domestic infelicity and intrigue, will tour 30 weeks.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
