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

Samantha Josephs, Carrying (Putnam, October 6) One of the year’s most unhinged premises comes from this trans body horror debut, as perfect housewife Martha begins to suffer the strain of performing impeccable femininity as a stealth trans woman. — Literary Hub, 1 Oct. 2026

The Second World War demanded mass buy-in; every factory, every worker, every young man, every housewife had to play a role. — Beverly Gage, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026

Cooper is a Polish immigrant New Jersey housewife who, step by step, makes the decision to abandon her husband and two teenage children for another life. — Taylor Antrim, Vogue, 19 Sep. 2026

On Double Lives of Suburban Wives, a group of housewives and their husbands work in adult content creation to provide for their families. — Kelly Allen, PEOPLE, 13 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for housewife

• afterlife
• pocketknife
• alewife
• birdlife
• folklife
• jackknife
• midlife
• midwife
• nightlife
• penknife
• wildlife
• knife

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