as in tomboyish
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Recent Examples of butch
Good was in a relationship with a woman, and her partner, who is butch, spoke impertinently to an ICE officer, so there, Good wasn’t your average white mother after all.
—
M. Gessen, Mercury News, 27 Jan. 2026
There are still so few stories about butch women, transmasculine, genderqueer, or nonbinary bodies—the kind of bodies that have been called monstrous all our lives.
—Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026
Next year the more butch EX60 Cross Country model will arrive for a different vibe.
—Joel Feder, The Drive, 21 Jan. 2026
In addition to the co-star of I Saw the TV Glow, there’s also Margaret Cho (playing the hot older butch girlfriend to Haven’s more femme character), Dominique Jackson, Tomás Matos, Katy O’Brian, and more.
—James Factora, Them., 21 Oct. 2025
Maybe not as uniformly vivid as his sister, Bernadette — such a pretty name for such a tough broad, in Lea DeLaria’s priceless, super-butch performance — but vivid enough to be memorable.
—Marilyn Stasio, Variety, 28 Apr. 2022
In her academic work, Butler argues that gender and sexuality are both constructed and performative; butch identity, as female masculinity, subverts the notion that masculinity is the natural and exclusive purview of the male body.
—Kerry Manders, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2020
With Mercedes McCambridge, unforgettable as Crawford's butch nemesis, as well as Ernest Borgnine, Scott Brady, John Carradine, Royal Dano, Ward Bond, and Ben Cooper.
—Patrick Friel, Chicago Reader, 26 June 2018
In this context, Jack feels welcome: Who said only butch gay men should be stars?
—Willa Paskin, Slate Magazine, 28 Sep. 2017
M. Gessen, Mercury News, 27 Jan. 2026
There are still so few stories about butch women, transmasculine, genderqueer, or nonbinary bodies—the kind of bodies that have been called monstrous all our lives.
—Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026
Next year the more butch EX60 Cross Country model will arrive for a different vibe.
—Joel Feder, The Drive, 21 Jan. 2026
In addition to the co-star of I Saw the TV Glow, there’s also Margaret Cho (playing the hot older butch girlfriend to Haven’s more femme character), Dominique Jackson, Tomás Matos, Katy O’Brian, and more.
—James Factora, Them., 21 Oct. 2025
Maybe not as uniformly vivid as his sister, Bernadette — such a pretty name for such a tough broad, in Lea DeLaria’s priceless, super-butch performance — but vivid enough to be memorable.
—Marilyn Stasio, Variety, 28 Apr. 2022
In her academic work, Butler argues that gender and sexuality are both constructed and performative; butch identity, as female masculinity, subverts the notion that masculinity is the natural and exclusive purview of the male body.
—Kerry Manders, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2020
With Mercedes McCambridge, unforgettable as Crawford's butch nemesis, as well as Ernest Borgnine, Scott Brady, John Carradine, Royal Dano, Ward Bond, and Ben Cooper.
—Patrick Friel, Chicago Reader, 26 June 2018
In this context, Jack feels welcome: Who said only butch gay men should be stars?
—Willa Paskin, Slate Magazine, 28 Sep. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for butch
Adjective
-
Linda Kaye Henning charmed audiences as Betty Jo Bradley, the spirited and tomboyish youngest daughter on Petticoat Junction.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
11 Jan. 2026
-
Off-duty, the actor can be found in statement outerwear and tomboyish button-ups and trousers.—
Hannah Jackson,
Vogue,
10 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Buyers surveyed over the last several weeks have offered a range of projections for the coming NFL season, with some shops anticipating a more modest overall gain for in-game deliveries (+3%) while others suggesting that Big Data will swell the TV numbers by an Amazonian +8%.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
22 Aug. 2025
-
The artist, whose name is Luis Alfonso Palacios II, wore brown cowboy boots made with Amazonian fish leather while astride a horse at a 150-acre, 125-year-old ranch and rodeo arena in Lebanon, Tennessee.—
Marcus K. Dowling,
The Tennessean,
21 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The big question is has our macho PM realized that militarily, Iran could turn out to be the Ukraine in this fight?—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
10 Mar. 2026
-
In the spring, Garrison starts tomatoes and other plants in the greenhouse, and her collection of citrus trees, hibiscus, macho ferns and Australian tree ferns make their home there in the winter.—
Mary Grace Granados,
Dallas Morning News,
3 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
If winning is the only goal, then war is, by profound inference, a game, a test of masculine fortitude.—
Casey Ryan Kelly,
The Conversation,
9 Mar. 2026
-
With their masculine style, derbies bring a polite firmness to any ensemble.—
Alex Sales,
Glamour,
8 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Where at the beginning of the period, the boyish, figure-obscuring flapper dress was the au courant silhouette, by the end, fashion was shifting toward the more body-conscious bias cut.—
Hannah Jackson,
Vogue,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Allen’s boyish charm will win over hearts again.—
Tim Graham,
New York Times,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The journal inspired the 2019 BBC drama Gentleman Jack, the nickname locals gave Lister for acting in what was deemed a manly way.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Mar. 2026
-
The rest of the show is very manly, quite harsh and brutal.—
James Hibberd,
HollywoodReporter,
2 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Many observers were taken aback by his haughty tone, hypermasculine preoccupation with domination, giddiness about violence and casual attitude toward death.—
Casey Ryan Kelly,
The Conversation,
9 Mar. 2026
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These are values that Allen says are unfortunately frowned upon in our hypermasculine culture.—
Wendy Wisner,
Parents,
3 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Butch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/butch. Accessed 15 Mar. 2026.
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