woman

[ woom-uhn ]

/ ˈwʊm ən /

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See synonyms for: woman / women on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural wom·en

[wim-in]. /ˈwɪm ɪn/.

an adult female person.Compare man (def. 1), girl (def. 1).

a female employee or representative: A woman from the real estate agency called.

Informal.

a wife.
a female lover or sweetheart.

Older Use:Usually Offensive. a female employee who cleans a house, cooks, etc.; housekeeper.

(in historical use) a female attendant to a lady of rank: Your woman informed us of your travel plans.

the nature, characteristics, or feelings often attributed to women; womanliness: He has always loved and admired the woman in her.

women collectively: Woman is no longer subordinate to man.

verb (used with object)

to put into the company of a woman.

to equip or staff with women.

Obsolete. to cause to act or yield like a woman.

adjective

of women; womanly.

female: a woman plumber.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Idioms about woman

be one's own woman, (of females) to be free from restrictions, control, or dictatorial influence; be independent.

Origin of woman

First recorded before 900; Middle English womman, wimman, Old English wīfman(n), wīfmon(n), equivalent to wīf “female, wife, woman” + man(n) “human being, man”; see origin at wife, man

synonym study for woman

Woman, female, lady are nouns referring to an adult female human being, one paradigm of gender and biological sex for adult human beings. Woman is the general term. It is neutral, lacking either favorable or unfavorable implication, and is the most commonly used of the three: a wealthy woman; a woman of strong character, of unbridled appetites. In scientific, statistical, and other objective use, female is the neutral contrastive term to male and may apply to plants and animals also: 104 females to every 100 males; Among lions, the female is the chief hunter. Female is sometimes used in disparaging contexts: a gossipy female; a conniving female. Lady meaning “refined, polite woman” is a term of approval or praise: a real lady in all things; to behave like a lady. When used as a form of address, lady may be polite or neutral in tone: Ladies, did you hear about the new brunch menu with bottomless mimosas? However, in the singular it is often perceived as rude: Hey, lady, I don’t have all day.

usage note for woman

1. Although formerly woman was sometimes regarded as demeaning and lady was the term of courtesy, woman is the designation preferred by most modern female adults: League of Women Voters; American Association of University Women. Woman is the standard feminine parallel to man. As a modifier of a plural noun, woman, like man, is exceptional in that the plural form women is used: women athletes; women students. The use of lady as a term of courtesy has diminished somewhat in recent years ( the lady of the house ), although it still survives in a few set phrases ( ladies' room; Ladies' Day ). Lady is also used, but decreasingly, as a term of reference for women engaged in occupations considered by some to be menial or routine: cleaning lady; saleslady. See also girl, lady, -woman.

OTHER WORDS FROM woman

wom·an·less, adjectivean·ti·wom·an, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH woman

lady, woman (see synonym study at the current entry; see usage note at the current entry)

Words nearby woman

Wolverhampton, wolverine, Wolverine State, wolves, wolves in sheep's clothing, woman, woman about town, woman-chaser, woman-day, womanfully, woman-hater

Other definitions for woman (2 of 2)

-woman

a combining form of woman: chairwoman; forewoman; spokeswoman.

usage note for -woman

Feminine compounds ending in -woman are equivalent to the masculine compounds in -man. When the person referred to is a woman, the feminine form is often, but not always, used: alderman, alderwoman; assemblyman, assemblywoman; chairman, chairwoman; congressman, congresswoman; spokesman, spokeswoman; businessman, businesswoman. However, some forms ending in -man are applied to women, and occasionally terms in -man are specified by legal code: Alderman Dorothy Lavelle. In general, the practice in current edited written English is to avoid the -man form in reference to a woman or the plural -men when mixed sexes are involved. Instead, a sex-neutral term is used: councilmembers rather than councilmen and councilwomen; representative or legislator rather than congressman or congresswoman. See also chairperson, -man, -person.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use woman in a sentence

Many women have borne the brunt of care work during the pandemic in ways that impact their work.
Covid-19 widened the gender gap among the world’s top scientists|Katherine Ellen Foley|September 17, 2020|Quartz
I know there are more women who have been employed and minorities than ever before.
Trump, in town hall, says he wouldn’t have done anything differently on pandemic|Colby Itkowitz, Josh Dawsey, Felicia Sonmez, John Wagner|September 16, 2020|Washington Post
More news below, including Citigroup’s decision to name Jane Fraser its next CEO—the first woman to head a major Wall Street bank.
The future of the call center|Alan Murray|September 11, 2020|Fortune
That article described the woman involved in the encounter with Mallott with sufficient detail to identify her as Jody Potts.
The Woman Propositioned by Alaska’s Former Lieutenant Governor Tells Her Story for the First Time|by Kyle Hopkins and Michelle Theriault Boots, Anchorage Daily News|September 10, 2020|ProPublica

Twelve of the top 100 films were directed by woman, four times the number of 2007 and more than twice the five films of 2018.
Despite some gains in the past year, Hollywood still has inclusion problems, study says|radmarya|September 10, 2020|Fortune
A fourth suspect, a 26-year-old woman named Hayat Boumeddiene, remains at large.
France Kills Charlie Hebdo Murderers|Nico Hines|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
In 2009, a Pakistani Christian woman got into a religious argument with some Muslim women with whom she was harvesting berries.
In Defense of Blasphemy|Michael Tomasky|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It is the summit of human happiness: the surrender of man to God, of woman to man, of several women to the same man.
Houellebecq’s Incendiary Novel Imagines France With a Muslim President|Pierre Assouline|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
While 19 percent of the House is female, just one woman will get to chair one of its 20 committees.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Congress|Dean Obeidallah|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Instead, the man and woman in the truck wanted to know where the crash site was and whether would I show them.
The 7-Year-Old Plane Crash Survivor’s Brutal Journey Through the Woods|James Higdon|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
She was also supposed to be the original or model of “the Virtuous Woman” therein portrayed!
Solomon and Solomonic Literature|Moncure Daniel Conway
The aged woman made no reply; her eyes still studied Ramona's face, and she still held her hand.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
There are three things a wise man will not trust: the wind, the sunshine of an April day, and woman's plighted faith.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
I find myself chained to the foot of a woman, my noble Cornelia would despise!
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
Woman is mistress of the art of completely embittering the life of the person on whom she depends.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou

British Dictionary definitions for woman

woman

/ (ˈwʊmən) /

noun plural women (ˈwɪmɪn)

an adult female human being

(modifier) female or femininea woman politician; woman talk

women collectively; womankind

the woman feminine nature or feelingsbabies bring out the woman in her

a female servant or domestic help

a man considered as having supposed female characteristics, such as meekness or timidity

informal a wife, mistress, or girlfriend

the little woman informal one's wife

woman of the streets a prostitute

verb (tr)

rare to provide with women

obsolete to make effeminate

Other words from woman

Related prefixes: gyno-, gynaeco-

Derived forms of woman

womanless, adjectivewoman-like, adjective

Word Origin for woman

Old English wīfmann, wimman; from wife + man (human being)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with woman

woman

see feel like oneself (new woman); marked man (woman); (woman) of few words; own person (woman); right-hand man (woman); scarlet woman.

woman

Idioms about woman

Origin of woman

synonym study for woman

usage note for woman

OTHER WORDS FROM woman

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH woman

Words nearby woman

Other definitions for woman (2 of 2)

usage note for -woman

Words related to woman

How to use woman in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for woman

Other words from woman

Derived forms of woman

Word Origin for woman

Other Idioms and Phrases with woman