laywoman

L1A1Y4W4O1M3A1N1

noun

A woman who is a layperson, one who has not taken a religious oath (such as becoming a nun).

“Carmen is not a professional anthropologist, but strictly a laywoman.”

OriginMiddle English woman ← Old English wīfmann ← Proto-West Germanic *mann →
Scrabble 16
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Meanings

nounlaywoman (plural laywomen)

plural laywomen

  1. A woman who is a layperson, one who has not taken a religious oath (such as becoming a nun).
  2. broadlyA woman who is not a professional in a given field.

    Carmen is not a professional anthropologist, but strictly a laywoman.

Origin

  1. Englishlay
  2. Proto-Germanic*wībą
  3. Proto-West Germanic*wīb
  4. Old Englishwīf
  5. Proto-Indo-European*mon-
  6. Proto-Germanic*mann-
  7. Proto-West Germanic*mann
  8. Old Englishmann
  9. Old Englishwīfmann
  10. Middle Englishwoman
  11. Englishlaywoman

From lay + -woman.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

laywoman. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/laywoman

MLA

“laywoman.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/laywoman. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “laywoman,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/laywoman.

Source: laywoman on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.