weaker vessel en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (Australia) audio
Meanings
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(dated, idiomatic, offensive) A woman; women collectively.
Certainly, when Satan first made the Attempt upon Eve, he did not think he should have so easily conquered her. . . . Well might she be said to be the weaker Vessel, tho’ Adam himself had little enough to say for his being the stronger.
1727, Daniel Defoe, chapter 8, in The Political History of the Devil:Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel.
1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 1 Peter 3:7:When women are the advisers, the lords of creation don't take the advice till they have persuaded themselves that it is just what they intended to do. Then they act upon it, and, if it succeeds, they give the weaker vessel half the credit of it. If it fails, they generously give her the whole.
1868–1869, Louisa M[ay] Alcott, chapter 41, in Little Women: […], (please specify |part=1 or 2), Boston, Mass.: Roberts Brothers, →OCLC:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| weaker vessels | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Relateds
Translations (13)
sv det svagare könet (a woman; women collectively) · it il sesso debole (a woman; women collectively) · fr le sexe le plus faible (a woman; women collectively) · ru сла́бый пол (a woman; women collectively) · ro ființa mai slabă (a woman; women collectively) · fi heikompi astia (a woman; women collectively) · cmn 女性 (a woman; women collectively) · sv det svagare kärlet (a woman; women collectively) · ru немощнейший сосуд (a woman; women collectively) · cmn 婦道人家 /妇道人家 (a woman; women collectively) · de das schwächste Werkzeug (a woman; women collectively) · fr vaisseau plus fragile (a woman; women collectively) · ba гүзәл зат (a woman; women collectively)