plural girls
1
a(1)
: a female child from birth to adulthood
a seven-year-old girl
(2)
: a person whose gender identity is female
… narrator Taylor Meskimen draws listeners into the emotional life of Zenobia July, a tech-savvy trans girl who's facing a new year at a new middle school.—
Rebecca Honeycutt
Rebecca Honeycutt
b
: daughter
Papa's answer was quiet. "I thought I taught you to read, my girl."—Markus Zusak
Markus Zusak
c
: a young woman
d
sometimes offensive
: a single or married woman of any age
2
: a female romantic partner : girlfriend
3
US, informal
a
: a female friend
I love going to a spa and dinner with my girls.—Karen Clifton
Karen Clifton
b
—used as a friendly way of addressing a woman or girl
Hey girl, I like your taste in Christmas gifts.—Miranda Crace
Miranda CraceGirl, you need to give yourself some credit.—John Van Meter
John Van Meter4
: a woman or girl native to a given place
a local girl
She was a city girl at heart.
5
: a female domesticated animal and especially a pet
She … is still mastering the art of being a good girl, as any 3-month-old puppy is.—Rotorua (New Zealand) Weekender
Rotorua (New Zealand) WeekenderKeeping low-key when leaving and returning is essential. Just a "Bye!" and "Be a good girl!" when you leave is plenty. Your dog will be busy with her goodies dispenser, anyway, and probably won't notice when you leave.—Ed Bailey
Ed BaileyEve is a 10-year-old female kitty who is an independent pretty girl …—Jackson (Michigan) Citizen Patriot: Web Edition Articles
Jackson (Michigan) Citizen Patriot: Web Edition Articles6
dated, offensive
: a female servant or enslaved woman
also
: a female employee
Examples of girl in a Sentence
Is this your little girl?
a group of teenage girls
His parents hope he'll soon find a nice girl, settle down, and get married.
Wait till the girls back home hear about this!
Our boss thinks of herself as just one of the girls.
She went out dancing with the girls.
They just hired a new girl to do the filing.
Recent Examples on the Web
The chocolate brown shade feels more fashion-girl than black but still goes with everything in your closet.
—Rosie Marder, Travel + Leisure, 27 Oct. 2025
Traversing quaint New York street corners and rooftops, Vincent serenades his girl with playful bars about love, commitment and the important building blocks of a good relationship.
—Mackenzie Cummings-Grady, Billboard, 27 Oct. 2025
Witness interviews describe the three shooting victims as getting into a disagreement with Haire over Haire's referring to girls in the house as women.
—Madeline Heim, jsonline.com, 27 Oct. 2025
Joining Lovato on the road will be Adéla, the burgeoning pop girl Lovato has been championing over the last few months.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 27 Oct. 2025
The couple welcomed their first baby girl in 2021, Honey James, followed by Haven Belle in May 2023.
—Stephanie Giang-Paunon, FOXNews.com, 27 Oct. 2025
The Haunted Mask, in which a Halloween mask begins to take over a young girl's personality.
—Jordan Runtagh, PEOPLE, 27 Oct. 2025
The film, which expands on Manuel’s Silver Bear Jury Prize-winning short of the same name from the Berlin Film Festival, follows Isabel, a tee-girl at Manila’s Alabang Golf & Country Club who spends her days teeing up golf balls mere inches from swinging clubs.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 27 Oct. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Rosie Marder, Travel + Leisure, 27 Oct. 2025
Traversing quaint New York street corners and rooftops, Vincent serenades his girl with playful bars about love, commitment and the important building blocks of a good relationship.
—Mackenzie Cummings-Grady, Billboard, 27 Oct. 2025
Witness interviews describe the three shooting victims as getting into a disagreement with Haire over Haire's referring to girls in the house as women.
—Madeline Heim, jsonline.com, 27 Oct. 2025
Joining Lovato on the road will be Adéla, the burgeoning pop girl Lovato has been championing over the last few months.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 27 Oct. 2025
The couple welcomed their first baby girl in 2021, Honey James, followed by Haven Belle in May 2023.
—Stephanie Giang-Paunon, FOXNews.com, 27 Oct. 2025
The Haunted Mask, in which a Halloween mask begins to take over a young girl's personality.
—Jordan Runtagh, PEOPLE, 27 Oct. 2025
The film, which expands on Manuel’s Silver Bear Jury Prize-winning short of the same name from the Berlin Film Festival, follows Isabel, a tee-girl at Manila’s Alabang Golf & Country Club who spends her days teeing up golf balls mere inches from swinging clubs.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 27 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Girl.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/girl. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
girl
noun1
a
: a female child
b
: a young woman
2
offensive
: a female servant
—used especially in the past
3
Etymology
Middle English gurle, girle "a young person of either sex"
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