alewife

alewife · noun¹

From ale + wife.

alewife · noun²

1. Late Latin · derived fromalausa
2. Old French · derived from[Term?]
3. French · derived fromalose“shad”
4. English todayalewife

Unknown. Possibly from aloof, the Narragansett name of a fish. See Winthrop on the culture of maize in America, “Phil Trans.” No. 142, p. 1065, and Baddam’s “Memoirs,” vol. ii. p. 131. Possibly from allowes (“a type of shad”), from French alose (“shad”), from Old French [Term?], from Late Latin alausa, influenced by Etymology 1 due to large belly of the fish.

Words from the same roots