different between women vs womanhood

English

Alternative forms

• See woman

Etymology

From Middle English wimmen, from Old English w?fmenn (“women”), from w?f (“female”) + menn (“men, persons, human beings”), equivalent to wife +? men. Spelling (with o) influenced by the singular; see woman for more.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation, US, Canada) IPA^(key): /?w?m?n/, /?w?m?n/, /?w?m?n/
  • Rhymes: -?m?n
• (General New Zealand) IPA^(key): /?w?m?n/, /?w?m?n/
  • Rhymes: -?m?n
• Hyphenation: wom?en
• Homophone: woman (some dialects, common in New Zealand and South Africa)

Noun

women

1. plural of woman

   Three women went for a walk.

   • For quotations using this term, see Citations:women.

Related terms

• women's lib
• womenfolk

Noun

women

1. Misspelling of woman.

Anagrams

• Mowen, menow

Middle English

Noun

women pl

1. Alternative form of wommen

English

Alternative forms

• womanhead (obsolete)
• womonhood, womynhood, wommonhood (feminist spellings; rare; see usage notes at woman)

Etymology

From Middle English womanhoode, wommanhod, whomanhode, variants of wommanhede; synchronically analyzable as woman +? -hood.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?w?m?nh?d/
• Hyphenation: wom?an?hood

Noun

womanhood (countable and uncountable, plural womanhoods)

1. The state or condition of being a woman.
2. All of the women of a given place, area, or subgroup regarded collectively.

   Synonym: womankind (universally: only synonymous when the meaning of womanhood is universal or worldwide)

   Antonyms: manhood, mankind
3. The idealized nature of a woman: all of the characteristics traditionally and ideally ascribed to womanliness regarded collectively.

   Synonyms: womanishness, womanliness

   Antonyms: manhood, mannishness, manliness
4. The self-concept of a woman with respect to her possession of the various qualities traditionally and ideally ascribed to womanliness; a woman's sense or view of herself as being more or less womanly.

   Antonym: manhood

5. (euphemistic) The female genitalia, especially the vulva.

   Hypernym: (slang) junk

   Antonym: manhood

Coordinate terms

• manhood

Related terms

• girlhood
• boyhood
• childhood

Translations