Main Entry:

¹fem·i·nine

Pronunciation:

\ˈfe-mə-nən\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Middle English, from Anglo-French feminin, from Latin femininus, from femina woman; akin to Old English delu nipple, Latin filius son, felix, fetus, & fecundus fruitful, felare to suck, Greek thēlē nipple

Date:

14th century

1: female 1a(1)2: characteristic of or appropriate or unique to women <feminine beauty> <a feminine perspective>3: of, relating to, or constituting the gender that ordinarily includes most words or grammatical forms referring to females <a feminine noun>4 a: being an unstressed and usually hypermetric final syllable <a feminine ending> bof rhyme : having an unstressed final syllable c: having the final chord occurring on a weak beat <music in feminine cadences>

— fem·i·nine·ly adverb

— fem·i·nine·ness \-nə(n)-nəs\ noun