dowager

Noun
US[dou-uh-jer]/ˈdaʊədʒɚ/3 syllables

Open English WordNet

Noun (1)

  1. a widow holding property received from her deceased husbandType of widow, widow woman
Word of the day · Nov 3About this word
incessantadjective

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Webster's Dictionary (1913)

Dow′a·ger noun

Origin: OF. douagiere, fr. douage dower. See Dower.

1. English law A widow endowed, or having a jointure; a widow who either enjoys a dower from her deceased husband, or has property of her own brought by her to her husband on marriage, and settled on her after his decease. Thomas Blount Alexander Mansfield. Burrill

2. A title given in England to a widow, to distinguish her from the wife of her husband's heir bearing the same name; — chiefly applied to widows of personages of rank.

With prudes for proctors, dowagers for deans.— Alfred Tennyson

Queen dowager, the widow of a king.

Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54

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