a married woman, especially when considered in relation to her partner in marriage.
a woman (archaic or dial., except in idioms).
old wives' tale.
a man's partner in marriage; a married woman
an archaic or dialect word for woman
to marry (a woman)
What is a basic definition of wife? A wife is a married woman. The word wife is often used when a woman’s marital status is important to the current topic. For example, a man might explain to a salesperson that he is looking for a present for his wife, which is a lot more helpful than saying he is buying a gift for “a woman.”The plural of wife is wives. A man who is married is called a husband. A woman whose marital partner has died is called a widow.
What does -wife mean? The combining form -wife is used like a suffix to mean “wife" or, more generally, "woman." It’s used in a variety of terms, especially in reference to professions, but it’s relatively uncommon except for in a few words. The form -wife comes from Old English wīf, meaning “woman.” Wīf was eventually combined with mann, which was then a gender-neutral term for an adult person, to create wīfmann, the source of the modern word woman. Want to know more? Check out our Words That Use entry for -woman. What are variants of -wife?Just as the word wives is used as a plural form of the word wife, the ending -wives is often used as a plural form of -wife, as in midwives.
before 900; Middle English, Old English wīf woman; cognate with Dutch wijf, German Weib, Old Norse vīf
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It’s proper to note that the driver of SpaceX’s valuation isn’t its space launches or its Starlink orbital wifi satellites, but its commitment to AI.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 16, 2026
Maidment is a therapist and can speak with her clients online from anywhere in the world, provided she has access to a laptop and a "decent wifi connection".
From BBC • Apr. 6, 2026
Most people have wifi at home and at work and don’t use all their data.
From MarketWatch • Mar. 25, 2026
Many airlines offer varying degrees of free in-flight wifi, which some see as a way to compete with rivals.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 21, 2026
“Well,” said the Wart, “I suppose it is some sort of war memorial, but it wifi have to do. I am sure nobody would grudge Kay a war memorial, if they knew his desperate straits.”
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
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.
