manliness
noun
man·li·ness
ˈman-lē-nəs 
: the quality or state of being manly (as by having qualities such as strength or virility that are traditionally associated with a man)
They'd been trained to identify emotional repression as the essence of manliness. Men who broke down, or cried, or admitted to feeling fear, were sissies, weaklings, failures. Not men.—
Pat Barker
Pat Barker… the angular manliness of her gestures …—John Colapinto
John Colapinto
Examples of manliness in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In 2006, Mansfield published a striking book, on an age-old subject: manliness.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 3 Oct. 2022
The version of manliness the ‘93 team beamed into every young mind in the tri-state area involved grapefruit-sized hunks of tobacco, chewed and spat.
—Megan Angelo, Vogue, 12 Oct. 2023
The story of manliness at Claremont might be said to begin with Harvey C. Mansfield Jr., the author of the 2006 book Manliness.
—Katherine Stewart, The New Republic, 10 Aug. 2023
People have different ideas of strength, and different ideas of manliness.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 18 July 2023
Vladimir Putin — 2019 Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is known for carefully curating his image, releasing photographs of him bare-chested riding a horse or swimming in a freezing Siberian lake or practicing judo in apparent displays of his strength and manliness.
—Adela Suliman, Washington Post, 2 June 2023
Charlie has a run-in with John Wayne and quietly threatens to out him as a draft dodger, in another touch that has present-day overtones; Charlie doesn’t like chest-thumping manliness from those who didn’t do their share.
—New York Times, 8 May 2021
This man’s fantasy about being oppressed in the world of literature because his manliness wasn’t welcome in the genre of romance writing didn’t ring true.
—Longreads, 10 Aug. 2020
Like his conception of irreducible manliness, though, the argument hasn't gone away.
—Samuel Goldman, The Week, 3 Nov. 2021
Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 3 Oct. 2022
The version of manliness the ‘93 team beamed into every young mind in the tri-state area involved grapefruit-sized hunks of tobacco, chewed and spat.
—Megan Angelo, Vogue, 12 Oct. 2023
The story of manliness at Claremont might be said to begin with Harvey C. Mansfield Jr., the author of the 2006 book Manliness.
—Katherine Stewart, The New Republic, 10 Aug. 2023
People have different ideas of strength, and different ideas of manliness.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 18 July 2023
Vladimir Putin — 2019 Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is known for carefully curating his image, releasing photographs of him bare-chested riding a horse or swimming in a freezing Siberian lake or practicing judo in apparent displays of his strength and manliness.
—Adela Suliman, Washington Post, 2 June 2023
Charlie has a run-in with John Wayne and quietly threatens to out him as a draft dodger, in another touch that has present-day overtones; Charlie doesn’t like chest-thumping manliness from those who didn’t do their share.
—New York Times, 8 May 2021
This man’s fantasy about being oppressed in the world of literature because his manliness wasn’t welcome in the genre of romance writing didn’t ring true.
—Longreads, 10 Aug. 2020
Like his conception of irreducible manliness, though, the argument hasn't gone away.
—Samuel Goldman, The Week, 3 Nov. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'manliness.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English manlynesse, from manli, manly manly entry 2 + -nesse -ness
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of manliness was
in the 15th century
Dictionary Entries Near manliness
Cite this Entry
“Manliness.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/manliness. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
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