This term is only a reference to a woman whose husband is lost with his whereabouts unknown. Not the politicized definition it has been used in recent times by some folks.
Words change meaning over time and sometimes a word that meant something in one context can mean something else in another context.
Or, let’s put it this way…
Does it bother you when people refer to the braided bread we eat on Shabbos as “challah?” After all, we all know that challah is *really* the dough given to the Kohen.
The wolf