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wom·an (wmən)
Share:
n. pl. wom·en(wĭmĭn)
1. An adult female human.
2. Women considered as a group; womankind: “Woman feels the invidious distinctions of sex exactly as the black man does those of color” (Elizabeth Cady Stanton).
3. An adult female human belonging to a specified occupation, group, nationality, or other category. Often used in combination: an Englishwoman; congresswoman; a saleswoman.
4. A female servant or subordinate.
5. Informal
a. A wife.
b. A female lover or sweetheart. See Usage Notes at chairman, female, lady, man.
Idioms:
(one's) own woman
Independent in judgment or action: She has always been her own woman.
to a woman
Without exception.
[Middle English, from Old English wimman, variant of wīfman : wīf, woman + man, person; see MAN.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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