as in masculine
having qualities or traits that are traditionally considered inappropriate for a girl or woman
she loved boxing and didn't care if others thought it was an unladylike sport
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Recent Examples of unladylike
That would have been unladylike.
—
Lucy Worsley
september 16, Literary Hub, 16 Sep. 2025
The new girl’s unladylike bravado ensures that she will be asked to board with the Brown girl.
—Chris Bohjalian, Washington Post, 17 Aug. 2023
In fact, one of the choicest bites of the entire meal was an unladylike gnaw of the generous gristle on a bone followed by a spoonful of marrow-thickened soup, bobbing with cubes of cleansing daikon.
—Jiayang Fan, The New Yorker, 2 Sep. 2022
Only 23 women marched in the first suffrage parade; public speaking by women was considered repellent and unladylike.
—BostonGlobe.com, 29 July 2022
There was nothing unladylike to be found here, which was the point, but also the problem.
—New York Times, 12 Jan. 2022
Each month the show focuses on a new lady or unladylike theme.
—Holly Baumbach, chicagotribune.com, 9 Dec. 2019
There was also some grumbling about the team’s enthusiastic celebration of its 13-0 victory over Thailand last month, which some folks thought was unseemly (code for unladylike?) given the lopsided score.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 July 2019
Their schedule was an unladylike grind of 115 games from May to September.
—Andrea Modica, Smithsonian, 23 May 2018
Lucy Worsley
september 16, Literary Hub, 16 Sep. 2025
The new girl’s unladylike bravado ensures that she will be asked to board with the Brown girl.
—Chris Bohjalian, Washington Post, 17 Aug. 2023
In fact, one of the choicest bites of the entire meal was an unladylike gnaw of the generous gristle on a bone followed by a spoonful of marrow-thickened soup, bobbing with cubes of cleansing daikon.
—Jiayang Fan, The New Yorker, 2 Sep. 2022
Only 23 women marched in the first suffrage parade; public speaking by women was considered repellent and unladylike.
—BostonGlobe.com, 29 July 2022
There was nothing unladylike to be found here, which was the point, but also the problem.
—New York Times, 12 Jan. 2022
Each month the show focuses on a new lady or unladylike theme.
—Holly Baumbach, chicagotribune.com, 9 Dec. 2019
There was also some grumbling about the team’s enthusiastic celebration of its 13-0 victory over Thailand last month, which some folks thought was unseemly (code for unladylike?) given the lopsided score.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 July 2019
Their schedule was an unladylike grind of 115 games from May to September.
—Andrea Modica, Smithsonian, 23 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unladylike
Adjective
-
Despite denim enthusiasts often being drawn to traditionally masculine iconography—such as the Wild West, cowboys, and Hollywood rebels like Marlon Brando and James Dean—what truly defines the subculture is a deep appreciation for nostalgia, freedom, and self-expression.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Of the current slate, only Memory of a Killer is in the masculine thriller genre in the tradition of signature Fox shows like 24 and Prison Break.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
12 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Women fighting for the right to vote were seen by their detractors as unfeminine, and vinegar valentines were a cheap and convenient medium to enforce gender roles.—
Melissa Chan,
Fortune,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Dior’s collection referenced the H-line created by its founder Christian Dior for Fall-Winter 1954-1955 – a controversial silhouette at the time as its flattened shape appeared, for some, unfeminine.—
Alice Pfeiffer,
CNN,
28 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unladylike.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unladylike. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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