-woman

-woman
a combining form of woman: chairwoman; forewoman; spokeswoman.
Usage. Feminine compounds ending in -WOMAN are equivalent to the masculine compounds in -MAN. When the person referred to is a woman, the feminine form is often, but not always, used: alderman, alderwoman; assemblyman, assemblywoman; chairman, chairwoman; congressman, congresswoman; spokesman, spokeswoman; businessman, businesswoman.
However, some forms ending in -MAN are applied to women, and occasionally terms in -MAN are specified by legal code: Alderman Dorothy Lavelle. In general, the practice in current edited written English is to avoid the -MAN form in reference to a woman or the plural -MEN when members of both sexes are involved. Instead, a sex-neutral term is used: council members rather than councilmen and councilwomen; representative or legislator rather than congressman or congresswoman. See also chairperson, -man, -person.

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A woman who sells oysters
● oyster

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comb. form in nouns denoting
■ a female of a specified nationality

Frenchwoman

■ a woman of specified origin or place of abode

Yorkshirewoman

■ a woman belonging to a distinct specified group

laywoman

■ a woman having a specified occupation or professional status

chairwoman | saleswoman

■ a woman skilled in or associated with a specified activity, esp. a craft or sport

needlewoman | oarswoman


Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

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  • woman — [n] female human aunt, daughter, gentlewoman, girl, girlfriend, grandmother, matron, mother, Ms./Miss/Mrs., niece, she, spouse, wife; concepts 414,415 Ant. man seaman / woman [n] sailor bluejacket, boater, boatman/woman, deck hand, mariner, mate …   New thesaurus

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