The term wife is most commonly applied to a woman in a union sanctioned by law (including religious law), but not to a woman in an informal cohabitation relationship, which may be …

The meaning of WIFE is woman. How to use wife in a sentence.

WIFE definition: 1. the woman that you are married to: 2. the woman that you are married to: 3. the woman to whom…. Learn more.

a combining form of wife, now unproductive, occurring in words that designate traditional roles or occupations of women: fishwife; goodwife; housewife; midwife.

We met him and his wife. They were husband and wife [=a married couple] for almost 60 years.

There are 15 meanings listed in OED's entry for the noun wife, one of which is labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

a combining form of wife, now unproductive, occurring in compound words that in general designate traditional roles or occupations of women: fishwife; housewife; midwife.

Dec 14, 2025 · Although mostly used only humorously, wife can be used with the to indicate one's own wife, as in "I'd like to go, but the wife wants me home".

wife meaning, definition, what is wife: the woman that a man is married to: Learn more.

Definition of wife noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.