male

noun \ ˈmāl \

|Updated on: 17 Jun 2018

Definition of male

1 a : a male person : a man or a boy

b : an individual of the sex that is typically capable of producing small, usually motile gametes (such as sperm or spermatozoa) which fertilize the eggs of a female

2 : a plant having stamens but no pistils

See male defined for English-language learners

Examples of male in a Sentence

She attended a school where there were more males than females.
The male of this species assists the female in feeding the young.

Recent Examples of male from the Web

Officers responded to the bank at 10:59 a.m. after an unidentified male handed a teller a note demanding money, according to Meridian Police Department press release.

— christina lords, idahostatesman, "Police need your help identifying this man who they say robbed Meridian bank," 11 June 2018
Related: How Stress Affects Your Appearance How many hours should an adult male get every night?

— adam hurly, GQ, "This Is How Sleep Deprivation Affects Your Appearance," 9 June 2018
Those documents pertained to officers finding DelTondo in a parked car with an underage male.

— CBS News, "Police chief placed on leave amid probe into teacher's murder," 7 June 2018
Witnesses told police that an adult Hispanic male threw his bicycle off the bridge then jumped into the lake, Elcock said.

— azcentral, "Divers pull body from Tempe Town Lake," 7 June 2018
In the Mission Terrace shooting, the victim was gunned down by an unknown male just after 11 a.m. on the 4500 block of Mission Street, Tomlinson said.

— megan cassidy, SFChronicle.com, "1 dead, 2 hurt in Mission District gunfire; shooter sought," 7 June 2018
Denver police confirmed that the victim was an adult male who was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

— PEOPLE.com, "Dancing FBI Agent Accidentally Shoots Denver Bar Patron While Attempting to Flip: Police," 3 June 2018
What sort of adult male speaks that slowly, in such a soft, childish tone?

— heather havrilesky, The Cut, "Why Did We Ever Leave Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood?," 31 May 2018
The body of an adult male was found by searchers in the Patapsco River just across the Baltimore County line, Howard County Police posted on Twitter.

— sarah meehan, baltimoresun.com, "Body found in Patapsco River days after Ellicott City flood, police say," 29 May 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of male

Middle English, from Anglo-French masle, male, adjective & noun, from Latin masculus — more at masculine

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

male Synonyms

Synonyms

buck, dude, fella, fellow, gent, gentleman, guy, hombre, joker, lad, man;

Related Words

master, mister, sir;

buddy, buster;

Other Biology Terms

autochthonous, fecund, homunculus, phylogeny, substrate

male

adjective

Definition of male

1 a (1) : of, relating to, or being the sex that typically has the capacity to produce relatively small, usually motile gametes which fertilize the eggs of a female

(2) : having or producing only stamens or staminate flowers

a male holly

b : characteristic of boys, men, or the male sex

a deep male voice

c : made up of usually adult male individuals : consisting of males

a male choir

d : designed for or typically used by boys or men

a male cologne

male contraceptives

e : engaged in or exercised by boys or men

A social code that taught women deference to male power in return for protection was upended …
—Jane E. Schultz

f : having a quality (such as vigor or boldness) sometimes associated with the male sex

2 : masculine 3a

3 : designed with a projecting part for fitting into a corresponding female part

a male hose coupling

—

maleness

play \-nəs\ noun

See male defined for English-language learners

See male defined for kids

Examples of male in a Sentence

There were more male than female students.
Most extension cords have a male plug on one end and a female plug on the other.

Recent Examples of male from the Web

And most of the people who took part were male and White.

— niki mcgloster, Essence.com, "People Still Believe God Is White, According To New Study," 14 June 2018
The Hollywood star based her speech on a study released Monday by the University of Southern California’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, which found that nearly 80 percent of film critics who reviewed last year’s top box-office hits were male.

— andrea mandell, USA TODAY, "Brie Larson wants to hear from minority film critics, not just 'white dudes'," 14 June 2018
He — all the World Cup officials are male — is backed up by one assistant specializing in offside, another who checks his colleagues' work for errors, and one who keeps an eye on the live TV feed while the others are deliberating.

— james ellingworth, chicagotribune.com, "FIFA video review rooms set for big test at World Cup," 9 June 2018
Police provided no other details other than that the suspect was male.

— mike hendricks, kansascity, "Rape investigation adds to frustration over security lapses at Jackson County's jail," 3 June 2018
According to Conroy, the club at that time was male, white and WASP.

— dannye romine powell, charlotteobserver, "Slipping into the sleeves of other lives: 8 memoirs to read now and 4 to watch for," 2 June 2018
Founded in 1845 by slave-owning Southern Christians, the SBC is still overwhelmingly white and its leadership is exclusively male.

— sarah jones, The New Republic, "The Religious Right’s #MeToo Reckoning Is Coming," 30 May 2018
Solo is the first Disney-era Star Wars film in which the protagonist is male.

— spencer kornhaber, The Atlantic, "The Soul of Solo Is a Droid," 27 May 2018
For mysterious reasons, this population used to be overwhelmingly male.

— SELF, "Why Are More Women Ending Up in the ER for Alcohol-Related Causes?," 23 May 2018

First Known Use of male

14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a(1)

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

male Synonyms

Other Biology Terms

autochthonous, fecund, homunculus, phylogeny, substrate

Male

geographical name Ma·le \ ˈmä-lē \

Definition of Male

atoll in the Indian Ocean that is the chief island of the Maldives and contains the nation's capital population 103,693

MALE Defined for English Language Learners

male

noun

Definition of male for English Language Learners

: a man or a boy : a male person
: a male animal
: a plant that does not produce seed or fruit : a male plant

male

adjective

Definition of male for English Language Learners

: of or relating to the sex that cannot produce young or lay eggs
: characteristic of boys or men
: having members who are all boys or men

MALE Defined for Kids

male

noun \ ˈmāl \

Definition of male for Students

1 : a man or a boy

2 : a person or animal that produces germ cells (as sperm) that fertilize the eggs of a female

3 : a plant with stamens but no pistil

male

adjective

Definition of male for Students

1 : of, relating to, or being the sex that fertilizes the eggs of a female

2 : bearing stamens but no pistil

a male flower

3 : of or characteristic of men or boys

a male singing voice

Medical Dictionary

male

noun \ ˈmā(ə)l \

medical Definition of male

: an individual that produces small usually motile gametes (as sperm or spermatozoa) which fertilize the eggs of a female

male

adjective

medical Definition of male

1 : of, relating to, or being the sex that produces gametes which fertilize the eggs of female

2 : designed for fitting into a corresponding hollow part

Learn More about male

See words that rhyme with male Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for male Spanish Central: Translation of male Nglish: Translation of male for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of male for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about male

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male

Definition of male

Examples of male in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of male

male Synonyms

Synonyms

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Other Biology Terms

male

Definition of male

maleness

Examples of male in a Sentence

Recent Examples of male from the Web

First Known Use of male

male Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

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Related Words

Other Biology Terms

Male

Definition of Male

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Related Phrases

MALE Defined for English Language Learners

male

Definition of male for English Language Learners

male

Definition of male for English Language Learners

MALE Defined for Kids

male

Definition of male for Students

male

Definition of male for Students

Medical Dictionary

male

medical Definition of male

male

medical Definition of male

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