Middle English wif develops into modern wife with the Great Vowel Shift and final silent-e spelling.
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wife
married woman in relation to a spouse
OPEN NODE 864 ↗DESCENDS FROM→
PARENT / EARLIER FORM / attestedMiddle English · Middle English · woman wife nounwif
woman; wife
OPEN NODE 865 ↗01
THE COMPLETE RELATIONSHIP
EVERY FIELD, NOT A FAIRY TALE
The older woman-or-wife field narrows toward the spouse sense.
Recorded before the twelfth century in English.
Merriam-Webster Editors · American Heritage Dictionary Editors
established — no additional confidence note is attached.
reviewed
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CITATION REGISTER
SOURCES ON THIS EDGE
Wife — Definition and Word HistoryEtymology and First Known Use
supportsAUDIT SOURCE ↗ORIGINAL ↗Publishes Middle English wif, Old English wīf, and the pre-twelfth-century horizon.
Wife — American Heritage DictionaryHeadword etymology
contextAUDIT SOURCE ↗ORIGINAL ↗Independently confirms the inherited English route.
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EDITORIAL REUSE