Definitions for widow
ˈwɪd oʊwid·ow

Princeton's WordNet(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. widow, widow woman(verb)

   a woman whose husband is dead especially one who has not remarried

2. widow(verb)

   cause to be without a spouse

   "The war widowed many women in the former Yugoslavia"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. widow(Noun)

   A woman whose husband has died (and has not re-married); feminine of widower.

2. widow(Noun)

   A woman whose husband is often away pursuing a sport, etc.

3. widow(Noun)

   A single line of type that ends a paragraph, carried over to the next page or column.

4. widow(Noun)

   type of venomous spider, of the genus Latrodectus

5. widow(Verb)

   To make a widow (or widower) of someone; to cause the death of one's spouse.

Origin: From widewe, from widuwōn.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Widow(noun)

   a woman who has lost her husband by death, and has not married again; one living bereaved of a husband

2. Widow(adj)

   widowed

3. Widow(verb)

   to reduce to the condition of a widow; to bereave of a husband; -- rarely used except in the past participle

4. Widow(verb)

   to deprive of one who is loved; to strip of anything beloved or highly esteemed; to make desolate or bare; to bereave

5. Widow(verb)

   to endow with a widow's right

6. Widow(verb)

   to become, or survive as, the widow of

Origin: [OE. widewe, widwe, AS. weoduwe, widuwe, wuduwe; akin to OFries. widwe, OS. widowa, D. weduwe, G. wittwe, witwe, OHG. wituwa, witawa, Goth. widuw, Russ. udova, OIr. fedb, W. gweddw, L. vidua, Skr. vidhav; and probably to Skr. vidh to be empty, to lack; cf. Gr. "hi`qeos a bachelor. 248. Cf. Vidual.]

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Widow

   A widow is a woman whose spouse has died, while a widower is a man whose spouse has died. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood. This term can be used for either sex, at least according to some dictionaries, but the word widowerhood is also listed in some dictionaries. Occasionally, the word viduity is used. The adjective form for either sex is widowed. The treatment of widows around the world varies, but unequal benefits and treatment generally received by widows versus widowers globally has spurred an interest in the issue by human rights activists.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Widow

   wid′ō, n. a woman who has lost her husband by death.—v.t. to bereave of a husband: to strip of anything valued: (Shak.) to endow with a widow's right: to be widow to.—ns. Wid′ow-bench, a widow's share of her husband's estate besides her jointure; Wid′ow-bewitched′, a grass-widow; Wid′ow-bird, a corruption of Whydah-bird; Wid′ower, a man whose wife is dead; Wid′owerhood; Wid′owhood, state of being a widow, or (rarely) of being a widower: (Shak.) a widow's right; Wid′ow-hun′ter, one who seeks to marry a widow for her money; Wid′ow-mā′ker, one who bereaves women of their husbands; Wid′ow's-cham′ber, the apparel and bedroom furniture of the widow of a London freeman, to which she was entitled; Wid′ow-wail, a dwarf shrub with pink, sweet-scented flowers, native to Spain and southern France.—Widow's lawn, a fine thin muslin; Widow's man, a fictitious person; Widow's silk, a silk fabric with dull surface, for mournings; Widow's weeds, the mourning dress of a widow. [A.S. widwe, wuduwe; Ger. wittwe, L. vidua, bereft of a husband, Sans. vidhavā.]

The Foolish Dictionary, by Gideon Wurdz(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. WIDOW

   The wife of a golfer during the open season, unless she golfs, too. In that event the children are golf orphans.

British National Corpus

1. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'widow' in Nouns Frequency: #1830

How to pronounce widow?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say widow in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of widow in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of widow in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of widow in a Sentence

1. Portuguese Proverb:

   A rich widow weeps with one eye and signals with the other.

2. Julian Fellowes:

   [Society] could turn a blind eye to a widow having an affair.

3. Kyle Haines:

   I was stuck in this role of widow, but I didn't know what to do next.

4. Charles Lichtman:

   Our client is a 78-year-old widow, whose UBS broker put all of her money into one investment.

5. Kenneth Feinberg:

   Normally, probate courts give the widow discretion in spending funds for family members especially sons and daughters.

Images & Illustrations of widow

Popularity rank by frequency of use