Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

headswoman

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: headswom-an
IPA

19

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A female headsman; a female executioner that carries out executions by decapitation.

noun

(obsolete) A midwife.

Example Sentences

"No candid person will wholly dismiss the proposition that the idea of having a Lord Chancellor but not a Lady Chancellor may at least be connected with the idea of having a headsman but not a headswoman, a hangman but not a hangwoman."
"HEADSWOMAN, s. a midwife. It would be presumptuous to pry into obstetric mysteries, to discover the origin or propriety of this denomination."

Etymology

From head + -s- + -woman.

Word Breakdown

Prefix: head
Suffix: -s-

Inflected Forms

headswomen (plural)

Questions

What does headswoman mean?: A female headsman; a female executioner that carries out executions by decapitation.
Where does headswoman come from?: From head + -s- + -woman.

How to pronounce headswoman

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “headswoman”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
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Repeat and practice — Say “headswoman” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.