a woman's work is never done

proverb

Housework, which is generally considered women's work, is never finished.

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Meanings

proverb
  1. Housework, which is generally considered women's work, is never finished.
  2. Women generally work long and hard, especially as they often are responsible for housework and care roles in addition to paid work.

    As Professor Myerhoff writes: "The adage 'A woman's work is never done' calls attention to the continuity of woman's tasks on a daily basis."

    1979 April 1, Charles E. Silberman, “A Proper Way to Live”, in New York Times, retrieved 07 Jul 2019
    3 more examples

    "Six o'clock, and working still! […] They say a woman's work is never done," remarked Ik Stanton, dropping into the easiest chair in the studio, "and for this reason, were there no other, your muse is evidently of the feminine persuasion."

    1878, Edward Payson Roe, chapter 1, in A Face Illumined

    According to the old maxim, a woman’s work is never done. It certainly never counts, a least not by the economic formulae that figure out the wealth of a nation.

    2010 October 30, Antonia Zerbisias, “Feminomics: calculating the value of 'women's work'”, in The Star, Canada, retrieved 07 Jul 2019

    They say a woman’s work is never done. If certain Brexiteers have their way, that might be truer than ever. […] [A] no-deal Brexit would mean a disastrous shortfall in care staff, which would force women out of the office and into unpaid social care roles, looking after elderly parents.

    2018 August 7, Harriet Marsden, “Why should women do the hard, unpaid work after Brexit?”, in Independent, UK, retrieved 07 Jul 2019

Origin

From a traditional rhyming couplet, found in at least two forms: : Man works till set of sun, : Woman's work is never done. : From rise of morn to set of sun : Woman's work is never done.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

a woman's work is never done. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/a%20woman's%20work%20is%20never%20done

MLA

“a woman's work is never done.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/a%20woman's%20work%20is%20never%20done. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “a woman's work is never done,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/a%20woman's%20work%20is%20never%20done.

Source: a woman's work is never done on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.