# comfort woman

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/comfort-woman
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

A woman forced, or supposedly recruited, into brothels by the Japanese occupation forces before or during World War II.

## Examples

- History books describe the tragic lives of every comfort woman.
- Many survivors have shared their painful stories about being forced to serve as a comfort woman during the war.
- The historical record provides harrowing accounts of the systemic abuse suffered by each comfort woman during the period of military occupation.

## Origin

Calque from Japanese 慰(い)安(あん)婦(ふ) (ianfu).

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.