wom ‧ an S1 W1 /ˈwʊmən/ BrE AmE noun ( plural women /ˈwɪmɪn/)
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ woman , ↑ womanhood , ↑ womankind , ↑ womanizer , ↑ womanizing , ↑ womanliness ; adjective : ↑ womanly , ↑ womanish ; verb : ↑ womanize ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: wifman , from wif ( ⇨ ↑ wife ) + man 'person' ]
1 . FEMALE PERSON [countable] an adult female person:
I was talking to a woman I met on the flight.
married women
a popular women’s magazine
When a woman is pregnant, the levels of hormones in her body change.
woman priest/doctor etc (=a priest etc who is a woman)
Ireland’s first woman president
women artists
2 . ANY WOMAN [singular] formal women in general:
A woman’s work is never done (=used to say that women have a lot to do) .
3 . businesswoman/spokeswoman etc a woman who has a particular kind of job:
Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher
4 . another woman/the other woman informal a woman that a man is having a sexual relationship with, even though he is married to someone else:
I’m sure he’s got another woman.
5 . be your own woman to make your own decisions and be in charge of your own life, without depending on anyone else
6 . PARTNER [singular] spoken a word meaning a wife or girlfriend, which many women find offensive:
Did he bring his new woman with him?
⇨ ↑ kept woman
7 . FORM OF ADDRESS [uncountable] old-fashioned not polite a rude way of speaking to a woman when you are angry, annoyed etc
8 . SERVANT [countable] a female servant or person who does cleaning work for you in your house ⇨ cleaner , daily help
⇨ ↑ old woman , ⇨ make an honest woman (out) of somebody at ↑ honest (8), ⇨ be a woman of the world at ↑ world 1 (21)
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ woman a female adult person:
a young woman with dark brown hair
▪ lady a polite word for a woman – used especially when you do not know the woman, or when the person you are talking to does not know the woman:
A glass of white wine please, for this lady here.
|
The young lady stood up and shook my hand.
▪ girl a young female person – usually used about someone younger than about twenty:
a very pretty girl
|
teenage girls
▪ female formal a woman – used especially when you are giving information about women, for example in formal surveys and reports:
Females account for 46% of Internet users.
■ relating to women
▪ female relating to women or girls:
female voters
|
Advertisers try to sell things by using images of the female body.
▪ feminine used about qualities that are considered to be typical of women:
You must not cry or show any other feminine weakness.
|
the ideal of feminine beauty
▪ womanly behaving, dressing etc in a way that is thought to be typical of or suitable for a woman – used to show approval:
her womanly figure
|
the womanly virtues of compassion and patience
▪ girly/girlie informal behaving or dressing in a way that is thought to be typical of young girls, or suitable for a girl – often used disapprovingly:
Stop being so girly! It's only a mouse!
|
a very girlie pink dress
▪ effeminate disapproving a man who is effeminate looks or behaves like a woman:
His long blonde hair made him look rather effeminate.
|
a pale effeminate-looking young man