trophy wife

English

Etymology

Coined 1989 by Julie Connelly in a Fortune magazine cover story, by analogy with a real estate trophy building.[1][2]

“Powerful men are beginning to demand trophy wives. ... The more money men make, the argument goes, the more self-assured they become, and the easier it is for them to think: I deserve a queen.”

Noun

trophy wife (plural trophy wives)

A wife, usually young and attractive, regarded as a status symbol for the husband, usually older and affluent.

Translations

young attractive wife who's a status symbol for her husband

Danish: trofækone c
German: Vorzeigefrau f, Trophäenfrau f (often derogatory)

Hebrew: אישה לקישוט‎, אישה ייצוגית‎, אישה לראווה‎

References

The CEO’s Second Wife, August 28, 1989
ON LANGUAGE; Trophy Wife, by William Safire, The New York Times, 1994-05-01

This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[1] The CEO’s Second Wife, August 28, 1989

[2] ON LANGUAGE; Trophy Wife, by William Safire, The New York Times, 1994-05-01