wom|an|hood /wʊ mənhʊd/
1 N‑UNCOUNT Womanhood is the state of being a woman rather than a girl, or the period of a woman's adult life. □ Pregnancy is a natural part of womanhood.
2 N‑UNCOUNT You can refer to women in general or the women of a particular country or community as womanhood . □ She symbolised for me the best of Indian womanhood.
wom|an|iz|er /wʊ məna I zə r / (womanizers ) in BRIT, also use womaniser N‑COUNT If you describe a man as a womanizer , you disapprove of him because he likes to have many short sexual relationships with women. [DISAPPROVAL ]
wom|an|iz|ing /wʊ məna I z I ŋ/ in BRIT, also use womanising 1 N‑UNCOUNT If you talk about a man's womanizing , you disapprove of him because he likes to have many short sexual relationships with women. [DISAPPROVAL ]
2 ADJ [ADJ n] A womanizing man likes to have many short sexual relationships with women. [DISAPPROVAL ]
wom|an|kind /wʊ mənka I nd/ N‑UNCOUNT You can refer to all women as womankind when considering them as a group. [FORMAL ]
wom|an|ly /wʊ mənli/ ADJ People describe a woman's behaviour, character, or appearance as womanly when they like it because they think it is typical of, or suitable for, a woman rather than a man or girl. [APPROVAL ] □ She had a classical, womanly shape. □ …womanly tenderness.
wo man-to-wo man also woman to woman ADJ [ADJ n] If you talk about a woman-to-woman conversation, you are talking about an honest and open discussion between two women. ● ADV [ADV after v] Woman to woman is also an adverb. □ Maybe she would talk to her mother one day, woman to woman.
womb /wuː m/ (wombs ) N‑COUNT A woman's womb is the part inside her body where a baby grows before it is born.
wom|bat /wɒ mbæt/ (wombats ) N‑COUNT A wombat is a type of furry animal which has very short legs and eats plants. Wombats are found in Australia.
wom|en /w I m I n/ Women is the plural of woman .
women|folk /w I m I nfoʊk/ N‑PLURAL [oft poss N ] Some people refer to the women of a particular community as its womenfolk , especially when the community is ruled or organized by men. □ Men never notice anything in a house run by their womenfolk.
wo m|en's group (women's groups ) N‑COUNT A women's group is a group of women who meet regularly, usually in order to organize campaigns.
Wo m|en's Li b N‑UNCOUNT Women's Lib is the same as Women's Liberation . [INFORMAL , OLD-FASHIONED ]
Wo m|en's Lib|era |tion N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Women's Liberation is the belief and aim that women should have the same rights and opportunities in society as men. [OLD-FASHIONED ]
wo m|en's move|ment N‑SING You use the women's movement to refer to groups of people and organizations that believe that women should have the same rights and opportunities in society as men.
wo m|en's room (women's rooms ) N‑COUNT The women's room is a toilet for women in a public building. [mainly AM ]
won /wʌ n/ Won is the past tense and past participle of win .
won|der ◆◆◇ /wʌ ndə r / (wonders , wondering , wondered )
1 VERB If you wonder about something, you think about it, either because it interests you and you want to know more about it, or because you are worried or suspicious about it. □ [V wh] I wondered what that noise was. □ [V + about ] 'He claims to be her father,' said Max. 'We've been wondering about him.' □ [V ] But there was something else, too. Not hard evidence, but it made me wonder.
2 VERB If you wonder at something, you are very surprised about it or think about it in a very surprised way. □ [V + at ] Walk down Castle Street, admire our little jewel of a cathedral, then wonder at the castle. □ [V that] We all wonder that you're still alive.
3 N‑SING If you say that it is a wonder that something happened, you mean that it is very surprising and unexpected. □ It's a wonder that it took almost ten years. □ The wonder is that Olivier was not seriously hurt.
4 N‑UNCOUNT Wonder is a feeling of great surprise and pleasure that you have, for example when you see something that is very beautiful, or when something happens that you thought was impossible. □ 'That's right!' Bobby exclaimed in wonder. 'How did you remember that?'
5 N‑COUNT A wonder is something that causes people to feel great surprise or admiration. □ [+ of ] …a lecture on the wonders of space and space exploration. □ [+ of ] …the wonder of seeing his name in print.
6 ADJ [ADJ n] If you refer, for example, to a young man as a wonder boy, or to a new product as a wonder drug, you mean that they are believed by many people to be very good or very effective. □ He was hailed as the wonder boy of American golf.
7 PHRASE You can say ' I wonder ' if you want to be very polite when you are asking someone to do something, or when you are asking them for their opinion or for information. [POLITENESS ] □ I was just wondering if you could help me.
8 PHRASE If you say ' no wonder ', ' little wonder ', or ' small wonder ', you mean that something is not surprising. □ No wonder my brother wasn't feeling well. □ Under such circumstances, it is little wonder that they experience difficulties.
9 PHRASE You can say ' No wonder ' when you find out the reason for something that has been puzzling you for some time. □ Brad was Jane's brother! No wonder he reminded me so much of her!
10 PHRASE If you say that a person or thing works wonders or does wonders , you mean that they have a very good effect on something. □ A few moments of relaxation can work wonders. COLLOCATIONS wonder NOUN 5