COBUILD frequency band
woman in American English
(ˈwumən) (noun plural women (ˈwɪmɪn))
noun
1.
the female human being (distinguished from man)
2.
an adult female person
3.
a female attendant to a lady of rank
5.
the nature, characteristics, or feelings often attributed to women; womanliness
6.
a sweetheart or paramour; mistress
7.
a female employee or representative
A woman from the real estate agency called
8.
a female person who cleans house, cooks, etc.; housekeeper
The woman will be in to clean today
9.
women collectively
Woman is no longer subordinate to man
10. See be one's own woman
transitive verb
11.
to put into the company of a woman
12.
to equip or staff with women
13.obsolete
to cause to act or yield like a woman
adjective
14.
of women; womanly
15.
female
a woman plumber
SYNONYMS woman, female, lady are nouns referring to adult human beings who are biologically female; that is, capable of bearing offspring. 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. USAGE 2. 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.
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019 by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
womanless
adjective
Word origin
[bef. 900; ME womman, wimman, OE wīfman, equiv. to wīf female + man human being; see wife, man1]
COBUILD frequency band
-woman in American English
combining form
a combining form of woman, occurring especially in nouns that indicate a role or profession
chairwoman
forewoman
spokeswoman
USAGE 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 members of both sexes are involved. Instead, a gender-neutral term is preferred: council members rather than councilmen and councilwomen; representative or legislator rather than congressman or congresswoman. See also chairperson, -man, -person.
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019 by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
