wife

¹

[wahyf]

noun

plural

wives 

1. a married woman, especially when considered in relation to her partner in marriage.

2. a woman (archaic or dial., except in idioms).

   old wives' tale.

verb (used with or without object)

wifed, wifing 

1. Rare.,  wive.

-wife

²

1. a combining form of wife, now unproductive, occurring in compound words that in general designate traditional roles or occupations of women.

   fishwife; goodwife; housewife; midwife.

wife

/ waɪf /

noun

1. a man's partner in marriage; a married woman

2. an archaic or dialect word for woman

3. to marry (a woman)

Other Word Forms

• wifedom noun
• wifeless adjective
• wifelessness noun
• wifehood noun
• wifeliness noun
• wifely adjective
• wifelike adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of wife¹

before 900; Middle English, Old English wīf woman; cognate with Dutch wijf, German Weib, Old Norse vīf

Word History and Origins

Origin of wife¹

Old English wīf; related to Old Norse vīf (perhaps from vīfathr veiled), Old High German wīb (German Weib )

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. take to wife, to marry (a particular woman).

   He took an heiress to wife.

see under wives.

Example Sentences

He had previously visited Flushing Meadows on several occasions before being joined by wife Melania on his last visit a decade ago.

From BBC

Three of my best friends who I grew up with in Fresno came out with their wives.

From Los Angeles Times

As an army wife, she was expected to follow her husband on assignment to Hong Kong and Germany.

From BBC

He took off his jersey and gave it to his wife, Kelly, near the dugout.

From Los Angeles Times

San Bernardino County coroner officials have identified the remains found underneath the home of a man suspected of murder a husband and wife at a nudist resort as those of the couple.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bride 
• companion 
• partner 
• roommate 
• spouse 

When To Use

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.

• Real-life examples: Queen Isabella I of Castille was the wife of King Ferdinand II of Aragon. King Henry VIII infamously had six wives (but one at a time!). If you are married to a woman, then she is your wife.



• Used in a sentence: My uncle has never been married and says he has no interest in finding a wife.  

Sometimes, a modifier is used with wife to be more specific about a woman’s marital partner.

• Used in a sentence: The documentary explored the lives of prison wives.

Some married people prefer gender-neutral terms, such as spouse or partner. The choice is up to the people in the marriage.

When To Use

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.