widow's man
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Old naval slang for a non- existent seaman whose name was borne on the ship's book, his pay, prize-money, etc., going to Greenwich Hospital or to a fund for widows.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “widow's man” mean?
Old naval slang for a non- existent seaman whose name was borne on the ship's book, his pay, prize-money, etc., going to Greenwich Hospital or to a fund for widows.
Is “widow's man” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.