feminine

adjective fem·i·nine \ ˈfe-mə-nən \

Updated on: 17 May 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

Other notes include patchouli, which belongs to the mint family, and vanilla, which adds a feminine touch.

— kara thompson, Town & Country, "Byredo's Bibliothèque Perfume Is Here to Stay," 3 May 2018
The second half of the premiere continued the conversation of Mark's decision to dress feminine but to use male pronouns.

— tamara fuentes, Good Housekeeping, "Last Night's "Roseanne" Revival Gets Mixed Reviews From Fans," 28 Mar. 2018
Profits from the sale of the shirt will go to I Support the Girls, which donates feminine hygiene products and used bras to homeless women and girls around the country.

— kavita daswani, latimes.com, "Sézane brings its French style to a monthlong pop-up shop at the Grove," 7 Mar. 2018
After all, there’s a reason many public bathrooms have signs telling you not to place any feminine hygiene products in their toilets.

— emma sarran webster, Allure, "You Should Never Flush Tampons Down the Toilet — Here's How to Dispose of Them Instead," 13 Feb. 2018
Organizers also have called for donations of bottled water, toilet paper, paper towels, feminine hygiene products and travel-size products such as lotion, shampoo, soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes and lip balm.

— lawrence specker, AL.com, "Birmingham to open warming station Monday, Tuesday nights," 28 Jan. 2018
After the first amputation Wasser became an advocate for women’s health, warning about potential risks associated with tampons and starting discussions about the safety of feminine hygiene products.

— lisa gutierrez, kansascity, "Model Lauren Wasser, who lost leg to toxic shock syndrome, has second leg amputated | The Kansas City Star," 16 Jan. 2018
Charlotte Water asks that customers put paper towels, wipes, hair, cotton swabs, feminine products, dental floss, coffee grounds and leftover food in the trash instead of down the drain.

— bruce henderson, charlotteobserver, "Spill dumps raw sewage into south Mecklenburg creek | Charlotte Observer," 8 Jan. 2018
In whimsical, yet strong, feminine looks styled by Giovanna Battaglia, Franke dons a dramatic top-knot that mirrors the style on the Fall runway, created by Orlando Pita.

— kerry pieri, Harper's BAZAAR, "Watch: What the Making of a Campaign is Really Like for a Model," 31 July 2014

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

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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