Definition
A person, especially a woman, who has been divorced from their spouse.
Etymology
From French 'divorcée,' the feminine form of 'divorcé,' which came from the verb 'divorcer.' The French term was borrowed into English in the 19th century, and notably the feminine form became the more common English version regardless of gender.
Kelly Says
Divorcee is fascinating because it kept its French feminine ending '-ee' in English, making it one of the few occupational/status words that still marks gender in modern English. Ironically, while 'divorcee' sounds somewhat formal or outdated now, the word itself shows how women's marital status was once treated as a distinct social category.
Translations
AMአማርኛ
መንፈስ ውስጥ አይደለም
men-fes wus-tit ay-deh-lem
ARالعربية
مُطلق
mu-tal-liq
BNবাংলা
বিবাহবিচ্ছেদ
bee-baah bee-ch-ched
CACatalà
divorciada
dee-vor-thee-ah-dah
CSČeština
rozvedený
ro-z-ve-deh-neh-y
DEDeutsch
Geschiedene
gesh-ee-deh-neh
ELΕλληνικά
διαζευγμένος
dee-ah-zeuv-g-men-os
ESEspañol
divorciado
dee-vor-thee-ah-doh
FRFrançais
divorcé
dee-vor-say
HIहिन्दी
तलाकशुदा
ta-laak-shu-dah
IDBahasa Indonesia
bercerai
ber-ceh-rai
ITItaliano
divorziato
dee-vor-zee-ah-toh
KKKK
бөлшектер
bo-l-shek-ter
MSBahasa Melayu
bercerai
ber-ceh-rai
MYမြန်မာ
ပြည်သူ
pye-thee-doo
NLNederlands
gescheiden
geh-shee-den
PLPolski
rozwiedziony
ro-z-vee-d-zee-ohn-y
PTPortuguês
divorciado
dee-vor-thee-ah-doh
RORomână
divorțat
dee-vor-ts-at
RUРусский
разведённый
raz-ved-yon-nyy
SWKiswahili
ameachana
ah-me-ah-cha-na
TAதமிழ்
விவாகரத்து
vi-va-ga-ra-th-u
TEతెలుగు
విడాకులు
vi-da-ku-lu
TLTL
nahiwalay
nah-ee-wa-lay
TRTürkçe
boşanmış
bo-shan-mish
UKУкраїнська
розлучений
roz-lu-chen-y
URاردو
طلاق یافتہ
talak ya-ftah
VITiếng Việt
ly hôn
ly hon
Ethical Language Guidance
Gender History
The feminine suffix '-ee' was mandatory for divorced women ('divorcee'); divorced men were simply 'divorced men'. This linguistic gender marking encoded women's marital status as identity-defining.
Inclusive Usage
Use 'divorced person' or simply 'divorced' regardless of gender. The -ee suffix is outdated.
Inclusive Alternatives
["divorced person","divorced"]