An archaic or dialect term for a female partner in crime; a female accomplice or woman who shares in wrongdoing.
From co- (together) + -ween, possibly from Old English winn (struggle/conflict) or related to 'ween' (archaic: to suppose). A rare historical compound.
This word almost exclusively appears in crime literature from the 1600s-1800s, reflecting a time when women's criminality was shocking enough to need special terminology.
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