grass widow

Meaning

1. A married woman whose spouse is away.
2. (obsolete) An unmarried woman who has had premarital sexual relations; a former mistress.

Synonyms

divorcee

relict

widow

surviving wife

Translations

Strohwitwe

grüne Witwe

εγκαταλελειμμένη γυναίκα

ζωντοχήρα

αγρωστίδες χήρα

divorcé

divorcée

divorziata

erba vedova

vedova bianca

onbestorven weduwe

groene weduwe

مغيب

esposa separada temporalmente

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈɡɹɑːs ˌwɪdəʊ/

Etymology

Cognate with Middle Low German: grasswēdewe

Cognate with Dutch: grasweduwe

Cognate with Swedish: gräsänka

Cognate with German: Strohwitwe

In summary

The word appears in the Germanic languages in different forms and senses, evidently being ancient, but the oldest (both 16th century) are English grasse wydowe and Middle Low German grasswēdewe, both meaning “girl who has lost her virginity, harlot”. Therefore “grass” in all likelihood refers to a bedding for premarital sex. Compare the expression green gown (“loss of virginity”). The girl became a “widow” in the sense that she was neither married nor a virgin. The sense then developed through “married woman who has relations in her husband’s absence” to the contemporary, softened meaning. Compare Dutch grasweduwe, Swedish gräsänka, German Strohwitwe.
Etymonline cites the book Vocabulary of East Anglia (1830) by Rev. Robert Forby, which records the term in that region as essentially referring to a woman abandoned after an informal marriage.