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Wife vs Wile - What's the difference?

wife | wile |

As nouns the difference between wife and wile

is that wife is a married woman, especially in relation to her spouse while wile is a trick or stratagem practiced for ensnaring or deception; a sly, insidious artifice.

As a verb wile is

to entice or lure.

As a proper noun Wile is

{{surname|from=nicknames}.

wife

English

Noun

(wives)
  • A married woman, especially in relation to her spouse.
    • My wife and I have decided to have a baby.
  • * (The Fisherman and His Wife)
  • * , chapter=10
    • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=It was a joy to snatch some brief respite, and find himself in the rectory drawing–room. Listening here was as pleasant as talking; just to watch was pleasant. The young priests who lived here wore cassocks and birettas; their faces were fine and mild, yet really strong, like the rector's face; and in their intercourse with him and his wife they seemed to be brothers.}}
  • The female of a pair of mated animals.

    • Usage notes

    Although not common, wife'' can be used with ''the to indicate one's own wife. For instance, "I'd like to go, but the wife wants me home." More commonly, "my wife".

    Synonyms

    * (married woman) better half, life partner, little woman (slang), partner, significant other, spouse * See also

    Antonyms

    * (married woman) husband, were (obsolete)

    See also

    * uxorial

    Derived terms

    (Terms derived from the noun "wife") * (From woman) alewife * (partner) co-wife * (partner) ex-wife * (woman) fishwife * (woman) goodwife * (partner) housewife * (partner) huswife * (partner) man and wife/I now declare you man and wife * (woman) midwife * (woman) old wife/old-wife/oldwife * (woman) pudding-wife * seawife * sister-wife * spaewife * (partner) trophy wife * (partner) wife-beater * (woman/partner) wifehood * (partner) wifeless * (woman) wifely * (partner) wifey (wife)

    See also

    * (wikipedia "wife")

    References

    *

    Statistics

    * 1000 English basic words ----

    wile

    English

    (Webster 1913)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (usually, in the plural) A trick or stratagem practiced for ensnaring or deception; a sly, insidious artifice
    • He was seduced by her wiles .
  • * Milton
    • to frustrate all our plots and wiles

    Synonyms

    * beguilement * allurement

    Related terms

    * guile * wily

    Verb

    (wil)
  • To entice or lure
  • , "to pass the time".
    • Here's a pleasant way to wile away the hours.

    Usage notes

    The phrase meaning to pass time idly is while away''. We can trace the meaning in an adjectival sense for while back to Old English, hw?len — ''passing, transitory''. We also see it in the whilend — ''temporary, transitory''. But since ''wile away occurs so often, it is now included in many dictionaries.

    References

    * Grammarist.com While away or wile away? * Common Errors in the English Language Wile Away, While Away ----