Meanings
nounmadwoman (plural madwomen)
plural madwomen
- A woman who is insane or mentally disturbed.
but there seemed to be no reality in the whole scene except poor little Miss Flite, the madwoman, standing on a bench and nodding at it.
1852 March – 1853 September, Charles Dickens, Bleak House, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1853, →OCLC1 more example
A madwoman with cropped hair and staring eyes stumbled into the column just ahead of our party, shouted words no one could understand, and fled among the trees.
1983, Gene Wolfe, chapter XXVIII, in The Citadel of the Autarch (The Book of the New Sun; 4), New York: Timescape, →ISBN, page 232
Origin
- Englishmad
- Proto-Germanic*wībą
- Proto-West Germanic*wīb
- Old Englishwīf
- Proto-Indo-European*mon-
- Proto-Germanic*mann-
- Proto-West Germanic*mann
- Old Englishmann
- Old Englishwīfmann
- Middle Englishwoman
- Englishmadwoman
Translations
Czech šílená žena
- šílená ženaa woman who is insane
Dutch gekkin, zottin
- gekkina woman who is insane
- zottina woman who is insane
French folle
- follea woman who is insane
German Irre, Wahnsinnige
- Irrea woman who is insane
- Wahnsinnigea woman who is insane
- Verrücktea woman who is insane
Italian matta, pazza
- mattaa woman who is insane
- pazzaa woman who is insane
Polish psycholka, szajbuska
- psycholkaa woman who is insane
- szajbuskaa woman who is insane
- świruskaa woman who is insane
- oszołomkaa woman who is insane
- wariatkaa woman who is insane
Portuguese doida, louca
- doidaa woman who is insane
- loucaa woman who is insane
- malucaa woman who is insane
Russian безу́мная, сумасше́дшая
- безу́мная (bezúmnaja)a woman who is insane
- сумасше́дшая (sumasšédšaja)a woman who is insane
Spanish loca
- locaa woman who is insane
Cite this entry
APA
madwoman. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/madwoman
MLA
“madwoman.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/madwoman. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “madwoman,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/madwoman.
Source: madwoman on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.