widowed

American  

[wid-ohd] / ˈwɪd oʊd /

adjective

1. having lost one’s spouse to death.

   The author has created a believably deluded narrator, a popular high school senior who plays football and lives with his widowed father.

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noun

1. Usually the widowed a person or persons who have lost a spouse to death.

   How do we offer strength and support to the aging, the widowed, the displaced, and others whose lives have been disrupted?

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of widow.

Other Word Forms

• unwidowed
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of widowed

widow ( def. ) + -ed ³ ( def. )

Explanation

If you know someone whose husband or wife has died, you can describe that person as widowed. The widowed lady next door may have lost her husband many years ago. A man whose spouse has died is typically called a widower, while a woman is a widow. Both men and women can be described with the adjective widowed if their partners are no longer alive. These words come from a root that's shared by the Sanskrit vidhuh, which means "lonely or solitary," and the Latin viduus, "bereft or void."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

widowed

Like the Brontës, the Draydens are the eccentric daughters of a widowed curate.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

According to the US House of Representatives in 2025, 45 widowed women have directly succeeded their late husbands in Congress - 38 in the House and eight in the Senate.

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026

I know a recently widowed 85-year-old who liked living in a gated community in South Florida for residents 55 and up.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 12, 2026

She shared her home in London with her widowed mother, Rita, until her death in 2007.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

“It provided for my family. My mother was widowed at forty-six. Every month, I was able to send her a good check.”

From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove

Related Words

• only
• unattended