housewife

noun

house·​wife ˈhau̇s-ˌwīf 

especially in sense 2 and in early poetry

ˈhə-zəf 

 or  -səf

plural housewives ˈhau̇s-ˌwīvz 

also

ˈhau̇z-ˌwīvz 

ˈhə-zəfs,

-zəvz,

-səfs,

-səvz

1

: a married woman in charge of a household

2

: a pocket-size container for small articles (such as thread)

housewifeliness

ˈhau̇s-ˌwīf-lē-nəs 

noun

housewifely

ˈhau̇s-ˌwīf-lē 

adjective

housewifery

ˈhau̇s-ˌwī-f(ə-)rē 

 British  -(ˌ)wi-f(ə-)rē

 also  ˈhə-zə-frē

noun

housewifey

ˈhau̇s-ˌwī-fē 

adjective

Examples of housewife in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Bob clarified that all the traitors agreed a housewife should go and that Dorinda would be the first. —Mathew Rodriguez, Them, 14 Jan. 2025

Jean-Baptiste delivers this utterance with the hollowness of someone who’s just come back from a war instead of a housewife and mother who picks fights with employees at a furniture store. —Alison Willmore, Vulture, 13 Jan. 2025

And, in the early twentieth century, images of the modern Chinese female student or housewife were powerful symbols of new ways of life that seemed relevant to men as well. —Livia Gershon, JSTOR Daily, 2 Jan. 2025

While his mother, Angele, was a housewife, his father — who started out as Paramount co-founder Adolph Zukor’s office boy in Astoria, Queens — spent the bulk of his career at MGM. —Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

housewife

noun

house·​wife ˈhau̇-ˌswīf 

sense 2 is often

ˈhəz-əf 

ˈhəs-əf

1

: a married woman who manages her own home

2

: a small container for small articles (as thread)

housewifeliness

ˈhau̇-ˌswī-flē-nəs 

noun

housewifely

-flē 

adjective

housewifery

ˈhau̇-ˌswī-fə-rē 

-frē

noun