Can the term divorcée apply if a woman has not only divorced, but subsequently remarried?

Can the term divorcée apply if a woman has not only divorced, but subsequently remarried? The definitions I have perused do not address the matter, but I would think the answer is "no."


The Cambridge online dictionary defines divorcee as

a man or a woman who is divorced and who has not married again (in the UK)

and ​

a woman who is divorced and who has not married again (in the US)

so, according to the Cambridge online dictionary, a woman (or a man in the UK) ceases to be a divorcee when they marry again. This makes sense since their marital status (as given when they fill in a form) changes from "divorced" to "married".

Admittedly Merriam Webster does not make the distinction between a person who is divorced and remarried and a person who has remarried but they make no statement either way while Cambridge make a definite statement. It seems that a remarried person is no longer a divorcee any more than a remarried widow is still a widow after her remarriage.


I think the answer is yes.

The fact that you have remarried doesn't erase the fact that you were divorced. And you remain divorced from your first spouse: that is what validates your second marriage.

Note that an argument substituting single doesn't work: yes, you were single, and now that you're married you're no longer single; but to say you are invalidates your marriage.

In most cases, the fact of divorce ceases to be socially important following a remarriage, which is why divorcees are unlikely nowadays to be referred to as such. Cascabel's example of the Duchess of Windsor is a counter-example: in her case [which was of her time] her divorce continued to be socially notable. But the fact that a divorce may not be socially notable doesn't erase it entirely.