widowed
B2Formal, but common in news, legal, and personal contexts.
Definition
Meaning
Having lost one's spouse through death; bereaved of a husband or wife.
The state of being a widow or widower; can also apply in a more figurative sense to organizations or entities that have lost a key partner or leader.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Specifically denotes a marital status resulting from death, not separation or divorce. Can be used as an adjective (a widowed father) or as the past participle of the verb 'to widow' (she was widowed last year).
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant differences in core meaning or usage. The word is equally common in both varieties.
Connotations
Neutral, factual description of marital status. Slightly formal but not overly so.
Frequency
Similar frequency in both corpora. More common in written than casual spoken English.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
to be widowedto become widowedto leave someone widowedVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “Widow's peak (a V-shaped hairline, not directly related but etymologically connected)”
- “Widow's walk (US: a rooftop platform)”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Rare. Might appear in HR or benefits contexts regarding marital status.
Academic
Used in demographic, sociological, or historical studies.
Everyday
Common in news, obituaries, and personal announcements.
Technical
Used in legal, census, and official forms to denote marital status.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- She was widowed at a young age when her husband died in the war.
- The tragic accident widowed him and left him with three children.
American English
- He was widowed after his wife's long illness.
- The attack on the fleet widowed many sailors' wives.
adverb
British English
- This form of the word is not standard. Use adjectivally or as a past participle.
American English
- This form of the word is not standard. Use adjectivally or as a past participle.
adjective
British English
- She joined a support group for widowed parents.
- His widowed aunt came to live with them.
American English
- The widowed father struggled to balance work and childcare.
- She checked the 'widowed' box on the census form.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- My grandmother is widowed.
- He became widowed last year.
- After her husband died, she was a widowed mother of two.
- The form asked if I was single, married, or widowed.
- Newly widowed, he found the social events for couples particularly difficult.
- The study focused on the financial challenges faced by widowed individuals in their sixties.
- The policy change disproportionately affected widowed pensioners living on fixed incomes.
- Having been tragically widowed in her prime, she channelled her energy into founding a charity.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of 'window' but with a 'D' - a person looking out a window, alone, after losing their spouse.
Conceptual Metaphor
LOSS IS A STATE OF BEING (becoming 'widowed' is entering a new, permanent life state).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid using 'вдовый' for a woman – it's masculine. Use 'вдова' (widow) or 'вдовец' (widower) as nouns. 'Widowed' as an adjective translates as 'овдовевший/овдовевшая'.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing 'widowed' with 'divorced'. Using 'widow' as a verb incorrectly (e.g., 'He widoweded last year' instead of 'He was widowed last year').
Practice
Quiz
Which of the following is the CORRECT use of 'widowed'?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, 'widowed' is the gender-neutral adjective and past participle. The corresponding nouns are 'widow' (female) and 'widower' (male).
Not in the active voice. The verb 'to widow' is usually used in the passive voice: 'He was widowed.' In active voice, it's rare and means 'to cause someone to become a widow/widower' (e.g., 'The war widowed many women').
'Bereaved' is a more general term for someone who has lost a loved one to death. 'Widowed' is specific to losing a spouse.
No, it is a standard, factual term for a marital status. However, sensitivity is always advised when discussing personal loss. Often, context dictates whether using the noun ('widow,' 'widower') or the adjective ('widowed') is more appropriate.