What does homemaker mean?
A homemaker is someone who takes primary responsibility for managing a household and caring for the people in it. Typical duties include cooking, cleaning, shopping, laundry, budgeting, and organizing family routines, although these responsibilities vary greatly from household to household. The word is also used more broadly for a person who is not in paid employment while providing that care. Traditionally, it was strongly associated with women, and the older term housewife reflects that history. In contemporary usage, “homemaker” is often preferred when the writer wants to avoid assumptions about gender or include homemakers of any gender. The expression can sound traditional in some settings, whereas phrases such as “stay-at-home parent” may provide a more neutral description in employment, educational, or legal contexts. Although the role has changed greatly since the mid-20th century, the word continues to identify the unpaid and often invisible work that keeps a household running.
nounA person, especially a woman, whose main role is managing household tasks and caring for the home and family. The term is now often used more neutrally to refer to anyone who performs this role.
- A person who manages household affairs, such as cooking, cleaning, shopping, and caring for family members.
"She works full time as a homemaker while caring for their two children."
"After the children left home, he continued to be the family homemaker."
"The course offers practical advice for new homemakers moving into a first apartment."
The regular plural refers to multiple people who perform or identify with the homemaking role.
"Many homemakers exchange practical advice in online communities."
“Homemaker” captures a whole household's daily work in two ordinary words: the place where life happens and the person who helps make it function.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does homemaker come from?
“Homemaker” is a compound formed in the 19th century from “home,” which developed from Old English hūs, and “maker,” which developed from Old English macian, meaning “to make” or “to construct.” The compound names the person who makes a home function and looks after its household. Its older associations arose as domestic labor became culturally identified with women, although modern usage increasingly treats the role as gender-neutral.
Related word forms
How homemaker is actually used
Historically gendered and sometimes associated with women, homemaker is now commonly used in neutral contexts. The related term housewife remains conventional but can sound more explicitly gendered.
Easily confused with homemaker
A housewife traditionally denotes a woman whose principal role is homemaking, whereas homemaker is increasingly used as a gender-neutral term.