Wiktionary

wijf

Dutch

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Etymology

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From Middle Dutch wijf, from Old Dutch wīf, from Proto-West Germanic *wīb, from Proto-Germanic *wībą. While initially a neutral term for "woman", the word came to be associated first with lower-class women from the seventeenth century onwards, and over the following centuries developed into a largely derogatory term for woman who is disliked or at least somewhat disrespected by the speaker. Nonetheless, in some dialects the word remained neutral even into the twentieth century.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ʋɛi̯f/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: wijf
  • Rhymes: -ɛi̯f

Noun

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wijf n (plural wijven, diminutive wijfje n)

  1. (now generally derogatory) woman, potentially being as pejorative as bitch
  2. (often derogatory) broad, bint

Usage notes

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  • The diminutive of this word, wijfje, has an independent meaning (“female animal”) which is a diminutivum tantum in that sense.
  • Colloquial diminutives (e.g. wijfie, wijffie) often have a familiar meaning and lack negative connotations.

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • Afrikaans: wyf
  • Jersey Dutch: wāif
  • Negerhollands: wief, wif
  • Skepi Creole Dutch: weef
  • Sranan Tongo: wefi

Middle Dutch

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Etymology

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From Old Dutch wīf, from Proto-West Germanic *wīb.

Noun

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wijf n

  1. woman
  2. wife, married woman

Inflection

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Declension of wijf
Singular Plural
nominative wijf wijf, -ve
accusative wijf wijf, -ve
genitive wijves, -fs wijf, -ve
dative wijve, -en wijve, -en

Descendants

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Further reading

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Middle English

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Noun

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wijf (plural *wijve)

  1. Alternative spelling of wyf
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