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headswoman. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
headswoman, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
headswoman in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
headswoman you have here. The definition of the word
headswoman will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
headswoman, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
From head + -s- + -woman.
Noun
headswoman (plural headswomen)
- A female headsman; a female executioner that carries out executions by decapitation.
- (East Anglia) (obsolete) A midwife.
1830, Robert Forby, The Vocabulary of East Anglia, volume II, London: J. B. Nichols and Son, page 154:HEADSWOMAN, s. a midwife. It would be presumptuous to pry into obstetric mysteries, to discover the origin or propriety of this denomination.