feminine

adjective fem·i·nine \ ˈfe-mə-nən \

Updated on: 20 Apr 2018

Definition of feminine

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 additional final syllable after the final complete foot in a line of verse

a feminine ending

b of rhyme : having an unstressed final syllable

c : having the final chord occurring on a weak beat

music in feminine cadences

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femininely

adverb

—

feminineness

play \ˈfe-mə-nə(n)-nəs\ noun

See feminine defined for English-language learners

See feminine defined for kids

Examples of feminine in a Sentence

The book examines the subject from a feminine perspective.
They've added some feminine touches to the decor.
The feminine form of the Spanish adjective “lindo” is “linda.”

Recent Examples of feminine from the Web

Among teens, depression was reported in 49 percent of transfeminine youth (those assigned male at birth who identify as feminine) and 62 percent of transmasculine youth, four to seven times the rate of their cisgender peers.

— rita giordano, Philly.com, "Transgender kids vulnerable to bullying, long-term depression, large studies find," 16 Apr. 2018
Some women like Giannecchini also used it for feminine hygiene.

— jen christensen, CNN, "Does talcum powder cause cancer? A legal and scientific battle rages," 11 Apr. 2018
The Maje woman is resolutely feminine, glamorous, and bold.

— matthieu salvaing, Harper's BAZAAR, "Inside a Fashion Designer's Work Wardrobe," 9 Apr. 2018
If Okun’s book connects to a feminine tradition of writing comically about life’s trials, Langlands’s book Craeft taps into a masculine one.

— josephine livingstone, The New Republic, "Does Crafting Make People Happier?," 9 Apr. 2018
Still, our notion of pink as a feminine color is a fairly recent construct.

— max lakin, WSJ, "Gritty in Pink," 5 Apr. 2018
After the first cancellation, the show returned for the 1982--83 season with a casting change: Gless, who was seen as more feminine, replaced actress Meg Foster as Cagney.

— rebecca keegan, HWD, "They’re Back! Murphy Brown and Cagney & Lacey Return to the Small Screen in the #MeToo Era," 30 Mar. 2018
To me that ring is a mix of something that is really strong, and old, and feminine, and not overdesigned, which is all that Ruth embodies.

— thomas beller, Town & Country, "Ruth Negga In Full Bloom," 26 June 2017
The Federal Bureau of Prisons in August issued a memo mandating that feminine hygiene products be available to all female inmates in federal institutions at no cost.

— brian witte, The Christian Science Monitor, "#MeToo helps shine a light on lack of feminine hygiene products in prison," 27 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'feminine.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of feminine

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

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

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feminine Synonyms

Other Biology Terms

autochthonous, fecund, homunculus, phylogeny, substrate

feminine

noun

Definition of feminine

1 a : a noun, pronoun, adjective, or inflectional form or class of the feminine gender

b : the feminine gender

2 : the embodiment or conception of a timeless or idealized feminine nature

See feminine defined for English-language learners

Examples of feminine in a Sentence

The feminine of the Spanish adjective “lindo” is “linda.”

Recent Examples of feminine from the Web

Her navy blue coat took cues from traditional suiting and featured a double breasted, peak-lapel finish, which was a boyish foil to her feminine flared trousers.

— edward barsamian, Vogue, "Victoria Beckham’s Rainy Day Uniform is Plucked Straight From Her Fall 2018 Runway Show," 11 Feb. 2018
At the 2017 MTV Movie & TV Awards on Sunday (May 7), award-winning actress and musician Hailee Steinfeld walked the red carpet in her usual feminine yet edgy style.

— braudie blais-billie, Billboard, "The Effortless Cool Behind Hailee Steinfeld's MTV Movie & TV Awards Lavender Minidress: Exclusive," 7 May 2017

Origin and Etymology of feminine

see ¹feminine

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

See Words from the same year

FEMININE Defined for English Language Learners

feminine

adjective

Definition of feminine for English Language Learners

: of, relating to, or suited to women or girls
grammar in some languages : of or belonging to the class of words (called a gender) that ordinarily includes most of the words referring to females