Recent Examples on the WebThis year, Herwad became the first village in the state to prohibit widowhood rituals, followed by others. Kanika Gupta, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Aug. 2022 One of her themes is widowhood as lived in traditional patriarchal societies, primarily but not exclusively in South Asia.Washington Post, 6 May 2022 Kloots previously shared this story in a panel conversation on grief and widowhood with Kelly Rizzo — the wife of the late comedian Bob Saget, who died in January at age 65. Giovana Gelhoren, PEOPLE.com, 5 July 2022 Loretta’s widowhood is acknowledged in brief mentions, but the directors know better than to squeeze in mournful flashbacks or even spell out how the nameless man died. Amy Nicholson, WSJ, 24 Mar. 2022 My husband had died a year earlier and I was used to being examined for symptoms, as if widowhood might be catching. Kathryn Davis, Harper’s Magazine , 16 Feb. 2022 After his father died, Cary had flown to Tampa and then driven north to the retirement community where his dad had ended his days in a condominium that had grown lonely in his widowhood. Thomas Mcguane, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2021 The number of tax disadvantages and advantages of widowhood may appear overwhelming but, again, not if described in everyday language and with ample examples. Larry Light, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2021 How unexpectedly fortunate for you, that widowhood has proved such a social triumph. Daniel M. Lavery, The New Yorker, 18 Sep. 2021 See More
Word History
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of widowhood was before the 12th century