Daily AncestorGrass widow
A grass widow was a woman whose husband was living but absent: separated, deserted, divorced, or away for a long time.
Black's Law Dictionary calls grass widow slang for a woman separated from her husband by abandonment or long absence. From the 1800s it also meant a married woman whose husband was simply away. An older, now obsolete sense was an unmarried woman who had had a lover.
A grass widow is not a true widow. If a woman is described this way, or calls herself a widow while her husband turns up alive in another record, look for a divorce, desertion, or a husband who went west or to sea. Grass widower was used for a man in the same position.
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Grass widow." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/relationships/grass-widow. Last checked 2026-10-12.