women

Two women are talking and laughing in a sunny park.

Definition

1. Noun (plural of "woman"):
   • Adult human females: "women" refers to multiple adult human females, as distinct from girls (younger) and men (adult males).
   • The female gender collectively: "women" can represent the entire group of adult females in a society or context.
   • Female individuals in a specific group: "women" may denote female members of a particular category, such as "women in science" or "women of the world."

Usage Examples

• (Multiple adult female employees.)
• (The female gender as a whole.)
• (A female individual within a group of climbers.)

Advanced Usage

• "Women's rights": the social, political, and legal rights of women.
  • The movement for women's rights gained momentum in the 20th century. (The campaign for female equality.)
• "Women's intuition": a supposed instinctive understanding or insight attributed to women.
  • She used women's intuition to sense that something was wrong. (A perceived female ability to perceive hidden truths.)
• "Women of a certain age": a polite phrase for middle-aged or older women.
  • The club is popular among women of a certain age. (Mature women.)

Variants and Related Words

• Woman (singular): one adult human female.
  • A woman walked into the room. (One female adult.)
• Womanhood (n): the state or condition of being a woman.
  • She celebrated her transition into womanhood. (The stage of being an adult female.)
• Womanly (adj): having qualities traditionally associated with women, such as gentleness or nurturing.
  • Her womanly grace was admired by all. (Feminine qualities.)

Synonyms

• Ladies: a polite or formal term for women.
  • The ladies enjoyed their afternoon tea. (Polite reference to women.)
• Females: a biological term for the sex that can bear offspring.
  • The study included both males and females. (Biological gender category.)

Related Idioms

• "Women and children first": a traditional code of conduct in emergencies, prioritizing the evacuation of women and children.
  • The captain ordered "women and children first" during the ship evacuation. (Priority for females and young.)
• "A women's work is never done": a saying that household or caregiving tasks for women are endless.
  • She joked that a women's work is never done after cleaning all day. (Continuous domestic labor.)

Phrasal Verbs (None directly associated with "women" as a noun; related usage is idiomatic)