feminine

[fem-uh-nin]

adjective

1. being or relating to to a woman or girl.

   feminine beauty;

   feminine dress.

2. having qualities traditionally ascribed to women, such as sensitivity or gentleness.

3. effeminate; womanish.

   Growing up, he had been told he had a feminine walk.

4. Grammar.,  noting or pertaining to that one of the three genders of Latin, Greek, German, etc., or one of the two genders of French, Spanish, Hebrew, etc., having among its members most nouns referring to females, as well as other nouns, as Latin stella “star,” or German Zeit “time.”

noun

Grammar.

1. the feminine gender.

2. a noun or other element in or marking the feminine gender.

feminine

/ ˈfɛmɪnɪn /

adjective

1. suitable to or characteristic of a woman

   a feminine fashion

2. possessing qualities or characteristics considered typical of or appropriate to a woman

3. effeminate; womanish

4. grammar

   1. denoting or belonging to a gender of nouns, occurring in many inflected languages, that includes all kinds of referents as well as some female animate referents

   2. ( as noun )

      German Zeit ``time'' and Ehe ``marriage'' are feminines

Other Word Forms

• femininely adverb
• feminineness noun
• antifeminine adjective
• antifemininely adverb
• antifeminineness noun
• half-feminine adjective
• hyperfeminine adjective
• hyperfemininely adverb
• hyperfeminineness noun
• overfeminine adjective
• overfemininely adverb
• pseudofeminine adjective
• superfeminine adjective
• ultrafeminine adjective
• unfeminine adjective
• unfemininely adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of feminine¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English femynyn(e), from Anglo-French, Old French: feminine of adjective feminin, from Latin fēminīnus, equivalent to fēmin(a) “woman” ( fetus ) + -īnus -ine ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of feminine¹

C14: from Latin fēminīnus, from fēmina woman

Synonym Study

See female.

Example Sentences

"First ladies do usually focus on realms that are seen as more feminine, such as children and education. Things that have been historically gendered," she said.

From BBC

He also played down feminine curves, telling buxom models to wear a breast wrap for his fashion shows, and all models to resist the hip-swinging runway strut.

From Los Angeles Times

Agnes starts as a primal feminine force and then becomes a wife and mother possessing a fierce love for family, a love that will be sorely tested.

From Los Angeles Times

I’ve studied Jungian psychology and Hindu Tantra — the energies of masculine and feminine, being and doing, birth and death.

From Los Angeles Times

Henry has a strong sense of this amorphous feminine figure.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• female 
• femalelike www.thesaurus.com
• gentle 
• soft 
• tender 
• womanish 
• womanlike 
• womanly