as in wife
a married woman in charge of a household
She was career-minded and never intended to be a 1950s style housewife.
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Recent Examples of housewife
At the time the 47-year-old activist and housewife won a special election to represent San Francisco, there were just 25 other women among the 535 members of the House and Senate—many of them widows who’d taken their husband’s place.
—
Molly Ball, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Judith Stanley is a housewife living in suburban New Jersey in the 1960s, who takes up photography to fill her long days.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
Emily mumbled a weak excuse when the real answer is simply that all of the housewives stir up trouble for each other by gossiping and sniping behind each other’s backs.
—Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 6 Nov. 2025
But Collins is best known for her Oscar-nominated, and Olivier- and Tony-winning work in Shirley Valentine, a story about a middle-aged British housewife who upends her life to go on holiday with her friend and rediscover herself.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for housewife
Molly Ball, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Judith Stanley is a housewife living in suburban New Jersey in the 1960s, who takes up photography to fill her long days.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
Emily mumbled a weak excuse when the real answer is simply that all of the housewives stir up trouble for each other by gossiping and sniping behind each other’s backs.
—Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 6 Nov. 2025
But Collins is best known for her Oscar-nominated, and Olivier- and Tony-winning work in Shirley Valentine, a story about a middle-aged British housewife who upends her life to go on holiday with her friend and rediscover herself.
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for housewife
Recent Examples of Synonyms for housewife
Noun
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President Bill Clinton pardoned Mark Rich, a former hedge-fund manager whose ex-wife had donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Democratic National Committee, the Clinton Presidential Library and Hillary Clinton's New York Senate campaign.—
NPR,
NPR,
11 Nov. 2025
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Killian sets his sights on the ideal contestant, Glen Powell’s Ben Richards, who’s struggling to provide for his wife and ailing child.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Nov. 2025
Noun
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For many young women, the stiletto’s discomfort is part of the appeal, offering proof that effort and glamor remain in an age of casual sneakers.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
9 Nov. 2025
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But at what point does not using available technology lead women’s football into a self-sabotaging stupor?—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Housewife.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/housewife. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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