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A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has died and has usually not remarried. The state of having lost one's spouse to death is termed widowhood.[1] An archaic term for a widow is "relict,"[2] literally "someone left over". This word can sometimes be found on older gravestones. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men.[3]
The term widowhood can be used for either sex, at least according to some dictionaries,[4][5] but the word widowerhood is also listed in some dictionaries.[6][7] Occasionally, the word viduity is used.[8] The adjective for either sex is widowed.[9][10] These terms are not applied to a divorcé(e) following the death of an ex-spouse.[11]
- ^ "Definition of WIDOWHOOD". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 2016-03-18.
- ^ "Relict definition and meaning - Collins English Dictionary". www.collinsdictionary.com. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- ^ 'widow', noun, Oxford English Dictionary 2nd edition.
- ^ "Widowhood definition and meaning - Collins English Dictionary". www.collinsdictionary.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "widowhood - definition of widowhood in English - Oxford Dictionaries". Oxford Dictionaries - English. Archived from the original on May 18, 2013. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "Widowerhood definition and meaning - Collins English Dictionary". www.collinsdictionary.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "Definition of WIDOWERHOOD". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "Definition of 'viduity'". Collins English Dictionary. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
- ^ "Widowed definition and meaning - Collins English Dictionary". www.collinsdictionary.com. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "widowed Meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary". dictionary.cambridge.org. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "Social Security and You: Questions about widow, ex-spouse benefits". Arizona Daily Star. 9 July 2016. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
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