Hypertext Webster Gateway: "matron"

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Matron \Ma"tron\, n. [F. matrone, L. matrona, fr. mater mother.
See {Mother}.]
1. A wife or a widow, especially, one who has borne children;
a woman of staid or motherly manners.

Your wives, your daughters, Your matrons, and your
maids. --Shak.

Grave from her cradle, insomuch that she was a
matron before she was a mother. --Fuller.

2. A housekeeper; esp., a woman who manages the domestic
economy of a public instution; a head nurse in a hospital;
as, the matron of a school or hospital.

{Jury of matrons} (Law), a jury of experienced women called
to determine the question of pregnancy when set up in bar
of execution, and for other cognate purposes.

From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)

matron
n 1: a married woman (usually middle-aged with children) who is
staid and dignified
2: a wardress in a prison
3: a woman in charge of nursing in a medical institution [syn:
{head nurse}]


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