make an honest woman of her
make an honest woman (out) of (someone)
To marry a woman that one is dating. You've been dating Carrie for quite some time now, Pete. When are you going to make an honest woman out of her?
See also: honest, make, of, woman
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
make an honest woman of her
Marry a woman who was seduced; restore virtue. Honesty and chastity have been verbally equated since the 1600s. The cliché is still used, mostly ironically or figuratively. Thus, “For an encore, Jackiw, Zander and company made an honest woman of that hoary standard, ‘Meditation’ from Massenet’s Thais” (Boston Globe, June 15, 2001).
See also: honest, make, of, woman
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
- make an honest woman (out) of (someone)
- make an honest woman of
- make an honest woman of somebody
- make an honest woman of someone
- long absent, soon forgotten
- bushel bubby
- (right) from the off
- cow
- cradle-snatching
- down with the swirl