1

husband

noun hus·band \ ˈhəz-bənd \

|Updated on: 11 Jun 2018

Examples: husband in a Sentence

Definition of husband

1 : a male partner in a marriage

her husband of forty years

2 British : the manager of another's property : steward

3 : a frugal manager

speaks his whole mind gaily, and is not the cautious husband of a part
—W. B. Yeats

—

husbandly

adjective

See husband defined for English-language learners

See husband defined for kids

Examples of husband in a Sentence

Have you met her husband?
she and her husband just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary

Recent Examples of husband from the Web

Roseanne Barr‘s ex-husband Tom Arnold is continuing to speak out about the cancellation of his ex-wife’s sitcom.

— jodi guglielmi, PEOPLE.com, "Tom Arnold Calls Ex-Wife Roseanne Barr a 'Ticking Time Bomb' After Tweet Gets Her Show Canceled," 5 June 2018
Getty Images Just weeks after the royal wedding, Meghan Markle's ex-husband, Trevor Engelson, is ready to tie the knot again as well.

— kayleigh roberts, Marie Claire, "Meghan Markle's Ex-Husband, Trevor Engelson, Is Engaged," 3 June 2018
Before the royal wedding, Meghan Markle's ex-husband, Trevor Engelson, was the topic of much conversation.

— amy mackelden, Harper's BAZAAR, "Meghan Markle's Ex-Husband, Trevor Engelson, Just Got Engaged," 2 June 2018
Barr's ex-husband Tom Arnold claims Barr wanted the show to be canceled all along.

— amanda garrity, Good Housekeeping, "Everything You Need to Know About the Rise and Fall of the 'Roseanne' Reboot," 1 June 2018
Her ex-husband was able to knock the gun from her hand and hold her arms, police said.

— howard cohen, miamiherald, "'I am going to finish this!' Mayor's sister shoots at her ex-husband's head, cops say," 1 June 2018
My ex-husband’s parents are in their 90s and frail.

— amy dickinson, chicagotribune.com, "Mom feels lonely and rejected on Mother's Day," 1 June 2018
My ex-husband’s parents are in their 90s and frail.

— amy dickinson, Detroit Free Press, "Mom feels lonely and rejected on Mother’s Day," 1 June 2018
She was predeceased by her ex-husband Robert L. Sylvester.

— hartford courant, courant.com, "Phyllis Sylvester Berg," 1 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'husband.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of husband

Middle English husbonde, from Old English hūsbonda master of a house, from Old Norse hūsbōndi, from hūs house + bōndi householder; akin to Old Norse būa to inhabit; akin to Old English būan to dwell — more at bower

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 13th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

husband Synonyms

Synonyms

hubby, man, mister, old man;

Related Words

better half, companion, consort, mate, partner, significant other, spouse;

bridegroom, groom;

2

husband

verb

Definition of husband

husbanded; husbanding; husbands

transitive verb

1 a : to manage prudently and economically

a country that has husbanded its resources well

b : to use sparingly : conserve

must husband one's strength

2 archaic : to find a husband for : mate

—

husbander

noun

See husband defined for English-language learners

Examples of husband in a Sentence

The country has husbanded its resources well.
husband our natural resources so that our children and grandchildren may benefit from them

Recent Examples of husband from the Web

Most farmers drew their water from canals extending from the Washakie Reservoir, which was usually filled by Memorial Day and carefully husbanded until August, when irrigation needs became strong.

— john fialka, Scientific American, "A Wyoming Reservation Shows the New Face of Drought," 6 June 2018
Although desires may be infinite, the means available are not, and good commanders set priorities, build alliances and husband their resources.

— john nagl, WSJ, "‘On Grand Strategy’ Review: The War Against Decline and Fall," 16 Apr. 2018
His favorite example is an oyster-husbanding pilot project on a barge off of downtown.

— jeanette steele, sandiegouniontribune.com, "New Port of San Diego chairman is a 43-year-old lawyer," 9 Jan. 2018
After Pearl Harbor, Chiang Kai-shek realized that his fate depended on the outcome of the new war between Japan and the U.S., and tried to husband his remaining forces.

— david kaiser, Time, "The War That Started 80 Years Ago Wouldn't Happen Today. We Can Still Learn From It," 7 July 2017
Kenya Moore has finally shared photos from her secret wedding to husband Marc!

— karen mizoguchi, PEOPLE.com, "RHOA's Kenya Moore Shares Photos From St. Lucia Wedding to Husband Marc," 20 June 2017
The rigged bidding process allowed GDMA to inflate prices for its husbanding services supplying items such as security, food and trash removal to visiting Navy ships at various ports.

— kristina davis, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Singapore executives plead guilty in 'Fat Leonard' Navy scandal," 9 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'husband.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of husband

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

husband Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

blow, dissipate, fritter (away), lavish, misspend, run through, squander, throw away, waste;

Near Antonyms

clean (out), consume, deplete, drain, exhaust, expend, impoverish, spend, use up;

Related Words

economize, save, scrimp, skimp;

preserve, protect, save;

hoard, lay by, lay up;

HUSBAND Defined for English Language Learners

husband

noun

Definition of husband for English Language Learners

: a married man : the man someone is married to

husband

verb

Definition of husband for English Language Learners

: to carefully use or manage (something, such as a resource)

HUSBAND Defined for Kids

1

husband

noun hus·band \ ˈhəz-bənd \

Definition of husband for Students

: a male partner in a marriage

2

husband

verb

Definition of husband for Students

husbanded; husbanding

: to manage with thrift : use carefully

I've learned to husband my money.

Learn More about husband

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for husband Spanish Central: Translation of husband Nglish: Translation of husband for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of husband for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about husband

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up husband? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

WORD OF THE DAY

skirl

play

to emit the high shrill tone of bagpipes

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Husák

Ḥusayn ibn ʽAlī

husband

husbandage

husband and wife

Test Your Vocabulary

Words for Summer: A Quiz

Which of the following words means “of or relating to summer”?

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games