Etymology

old wife

Today it means: An old woman, later especially one who tells old wives' tales. Full definition →

First used 9th c.Middle English ald wyf
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The story

  1. Middle English · inherited fromald wyf
  2. English todayold wife

From Middle English ald wyf, eld wiif, olde wyffe.

First known use, by meaning

  • from 9th c. An old woman, later especially one who tells old wives' tales.
  • from 16th c. the alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus)
  • from 16th c. A species of perciform fish endemic to the temperate coastal waters of Australia (Enoplosus armatus)
  • from 16th c. Balistes vetula (Queen triggerfish)
  • from 16th c. Certain spot-tail porgies (Diplodus ascensionis, Diplodus helenae)
  • from 16th c. Spondyliosoma cantharus (black seabream)
  • from 16th c. Trachinotus goodei (great pompano)
  • from 16th c. A wrasse

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.