Cuckquean

A cuckquean is the wife of an adulterous husband (or partner for unmarried companions), and the gender-opposite of a cuckold.^[1] In evolutionary biology, the term is also applied to females who are investing parental effort in offspring that are not genetically their own. Similar prying within a family is called wittoldry.^[2] The term is derived from Early Modern English dating back to AD 1562^[3]^[4] and is composed of the terms cuck^[5] "someone whose partner is unfaithful" and quean "disreputable woman".^[6]

^ Coleman, Julie (1 January 1999). Love, Sex, and Marriage: A Historical Thesaurus. Rodopi. ISBN 9042004339. Retrieved 22 November 2016 – via Google Books.
^ Amussen, Susan D. "The Contradictions of Patriarchy in Early Modern England." (2018).
^ Heywood, John (1562). The Proverbs and Epigrams of John Heywood (A.D. 1562). p. 62 II.vi – via Google Books. Ye make hir a cookqueane, and conſume hir good.
^ Williams, Gordon (13 September 2001). A Dictionary of Sexual Language and Imagery in Shakespearean and Stuart Literature: Three Volume Set Volume I A-F Volume II G-P Volume III Q-Z. A&C Black. ISBN 9780485113938. Retrieved 22 November 2016 – via Google Books.
^ Merriam-Webster: cuck
^ Merriam-Webster: queane

[1] Coleman, Julie (1 January 1999). Love, Sex, and Marriage: A Historical Thesaurus. Rodopi. ISBN 9042004339. Retrieved 22 November 2016 – via Google Books.

[2] Amussen, Susan D. "The Contradictions of Patriarchy in Early Modern England." (2018).

[3] Heywood, John (1562). The Proverbs and Epigrams of John Heywood (A.D. 1562). p. 62 II.vi – via Google Books. Ye make hir a cookqueane, and conſume hir good.

[4] Williams, Gordon (13 September 2001). A Dictionary of Sexual Language and Imagery in Shakespearean and Stuart Literature: Three Volume Set Volume I A-F Volume II G-P Volume III Q-Z. A&C Black. ISBN 9780485113938. Retrieved 22 November 2016 – via Google Books.

[mw-cuck-5] Merriam-Webster: cuck

[mw-queane-6] Merriam-Webster: queane

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