Was the Samaritan woman at the well a Gentile or a Jew?
The Samaritan woman at the well was a Jewess, not a Gentile. Although Samaritans were half-breeds who had intermarried and adulterated their bloodline and worship, they were still more Jew than Gentile. Therefore, Jesus was speaking to a Jewess, not a Gentile.
Les explains that the Samaritans of Jesus' day were the result of the ten tribes that had come back and set up worship at Samaria. They became the hated Samaritans because they were half-breeds, having intermarried and adulterated both their bloodline and their worship, even setting up a false temple. Yet, despite this mixture, he maintains they were still more Jew than Gentile. So when Jesus talked with the woman of Samaria at the well, He was not talking to a Gentile but to a Jewess.