The current pronunciation of the first vowel of the singular began to appear in western England in the 13th century under the rounding influence of thew, though the older pronunciation with/i/ (→ modern/ɪ/) remained in use into the 15th century. Although the vowel of the plural was sometimes also altered to/u/ (→ modern/ʊ/) beginning in the 14th century, the pronunciation with/ɪ/ ultimately won out there, possibly under the influence of pairs likefoot–feet. However, some speakers (especially ofNew Zealand English orSouth African English) have either retained or reinnovated the pronunciation of the plural with/ʊ/. The modern spellingwomen for the plural is due to influence of the singular; it is attested from the 15th century.
For a time in the 16th and 17th centuries, the pronunciation of the singular sometimes drifted even further back towards/uː/ or/ɔː~oː/ (→ modern/oʊ~əʊ/) and the plural sometimes drifted even further forward towards/iː/, leading to comparisons of the words to "woe man" or "we men".)[1][2][3][4]
1887, Helen Campbell,Prisoners of poverty: their trades and their lives, page120:
But thiswoman is a nice Germanwoman that fell on the ice and sprained her ankle last winter, and we saw to her well as we could till she got better.
1888 September 6,Michigan School Moderator, page402, column 3:
Dr. J. H. Vincent, the great lecturer, says that a man's greatness consists in his courage; his inherent nobleness; his noble deeds, great exploits, and benefits to the world; but that behind every great man is a greatwoman - his mother.
"There is nothing wrong with Melissa or the way she was raised. She is a sweet, kind, intelligentwoman with a generous heart and more love for her child than you and Mother ever showed for either of your children."
2020 August 18,Veronica Chambers, The Staff of The New York Times,Finish The Fight!: The Brave and Revolutionary Women Who Fought for the Right to Vote, HarperCollins,→ISBN:
You can't spend months studying the history of the suffrage movement without gaining a new appreciation for the grit and gumption it takes to be a powerfulwoman leader.
“[…] it is not fair of you to bring against mankind double weapons ! Dangerous enough you are aswoman alone, without bringing to your aid those gifts of mind suited to problems which men have been accustomed to arrogate to themselves.”
1972, Helen Reddy,I Am Woman, first line:
I amWoman, hear me roar / In numbers too big to ignore
1997, Bob Grant,Let's Be Heard, page42:
For if modernwoman is so intent on keeping her surname alive, why not demand it be passed along to her children?
2011,Eileen Gray and the Design of Sapphic Modernity: Staying In, page109:
Unsurprisingly, if modern man is a sort of camera, modernwoman is a picture.
To be born awoman has been to be born, within an allotted and confined space, into the keeping of men.
2007, Clifford B. Bowyer,The Siege of Zoldex, Silver Leaf Books, LLC,→ISBN, page307:
One of the elves, awoman with long auburn hair, was garbed identically to the two dwarves.
2008, Christopher Paolini,Brisingr: Or The Seven Promises of Eragon Shadeslayer and Saphira Bjartskular - Inheritance Book Three,→ISBN, page549:
Clearing a space between the tables, the men tested their prowess against one another with feats of wrestling and archery and bouts with quarterstaves. Two of the elves, a man and awoman, demonstrated their skill with swordplay—[…]
2012, Merlin Stone,When God Was AWoman:
At the very dawn of religion, God was awoman.
2014, Oisin McGann,Kings of the Realm: Cruel Salvation, Penguin UK,→ISBN:
There was a pair of burly dwarves – awoman and a man – bearing the markings of the formidable Thane Guards.
1914,D. H. Lawrence,Study of Thomas Hardy and Other Essays, chapter 7: "Of Being and Not-Being":
And then, when he lies with hiswoman, the man may concurrently be with God, and so get increase of his soul.
A female person who is extremely fond of or devoted to a specified type of thing.(Used as the last element of a compound.)
2004, Hyveth Williams,Secrets of a Happy Heart: A Fresh Look at the Sermon on the Mount, page70:
Perhaps my problem is that I am a catwoman. I can't imagine any finicky feline (and they all are that at one time or another) slobbering over anyone, even a beloved owner, the way a dog does.
As a term of address, the word is often considered patronizing and at least somewhat offensive; compare the usage ofwoman as a verb.
American grammarians and style guides often proscribe/reject the usage ofwoman as an attributive (a noun used to describe other nouns, as in "a woman leader", a usage which is sometimes mistaken for an adjective).[5][6][7][8] It has been said to be particularly common in Nigeria and India.
A few alternative spellings (see below) respell the term so as not to containman.
1813, “Yorkshire Assizes. May awoman be deemed a sailor sufficient inmanning a vessel?Case of Insurance.—Cookv. Thompson.”, inThe Literary Panorama,[…], volume XIV, London:[…]Cox and Baylis,[…]forC[harles] Taylor,[…],page683:
[…]he should prove, from the testimony of the most experienced seamen, that the vessel was, if not, strictly speaking, sufficientlymanned, yet that she was sufficientlymanned andwomanned. The Gypsey was a vessel of 43 tons burden, and there were on board two able seamen and the Captain’s wife, who was a very goodsailor;
1956, Rex Stout,Three Witnesses, The Viking Press, page54:
Apparently the Sixty-ninth Street office of Bagby Answers, Inc., was beingwomaned for the day from other offices.
Gus Dinsmore, the public beach parking lot attendent,[sic] said he guessed that so many cars must be just stopped dead along the road that even those manned (orwomaned) by able drivers would be unable to move.
2010, Julia Glass,The Widower's Tale, page77:
The information desk is now manned (womaned) by someone whose main job is to help you reserve time slots for the computers or guide you through the arduous process of “logging on.”
^“AP Stylebook: Use female, not woman, as an adjective. For example: She is the first female governor of North Carolina. Treatment of the sexes should be evenhanded and free of assumptions and stereotypes.”, inTwitter[1], 27 July 2020, retrieved27 May 2022
Škrobu welmi podobná hmota zdá se býti womanina (inulinum), kterauž P. Vauquelin w kořenu Womanu lekařského (Inula helenium) nalezl.
A substance similar to starch seems to be the elecampine (inulinum) which already P. Vauquelin has found in the root of the officinal inula (Inula helenium).
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