wifely

[ wahyf-lee ]

adjective,wife·li·er, wife·li·est.

Origin of wifely

before 900; Middle English wifly,Old English wīflīc.See wife, -ly

He seems to have, at least if nothing else, a woman who flirts with him with a wifely confidence.
Doctor Who’s Global Takeover | Jace Lacob | August 23, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
They seem less afraid of her hard power than they were of her soft, behind-the-scenes, wifely power.
Michelle Obama's Power Trip | Tunku Varadarajan | October 7, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
Moreover, wifely adoration was particularly bad for clergymen, who were far too much inclined already to give themselves airs.
Marriage la mode | Mrs. Humphry Ward
Mrs. Joe ran for his overcoat and best hat, gave him a wifely kiss, and watched him depart from the low brown door-way.
St. Nicholas, Vol. 5, No. 5, March, 1878 | Various
Then, with true wifely instinct she sought to cheer him up with pleasing prattle of a new bonnet he had promised her.
The Fiend's Delight | Dod Grile

Mme. Fauvel's resistance grew weaker and more faint, as her niece pointed out the line for her to pursue: the path of wifely duty.
File No. 113 | Emile Gaboriau
Yet the lady of the Van Pool, whatever her practice, had in theory some relics of old-fashioned wifely duty.
The Science of Fairy Tales | Edwin Sidney Hartland

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