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Webster 1913 Edition

Noun.

The business of the mistress of a family; female management of domestic concerns.

Noun.

hous'wifery. The business of the mistress of a family; female business in the economy of a family; female management of domestic concerns.

housewifery ‎(usually uncountable, plural housewiferies)

The state or activity of being a housewife; household management, domestic skills. [from 15th c.]
- 1918, Rebecca West, The Return of the Soldier, Virago 2014, p. 39:
  ‘How you've forgotten,’ she cried, and ran up to him, rattling her keys and looking grave with housewifery […].
(obsolete) Household goods. [16th-19th c.]

the state of being a housewife