as in feminine
of or relating to a man who has or displays qualities considered more suitable for women
there is nothing unmanly about letting your emotions show
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Recent Examples of unmanly
Why beef culture and agriculture matter in Texas Some of Talarico's critics seemed to be ripping on his manhood, referencing his support for the LGBTQ+ community, along with the purportedly unmanly notion of having, at one time, eschewed meat.
—
Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 29 May 2026
Clever rather than athletic; also unmanly.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 14 May 2026
In Benediction, Terence Davies had to split Siegfried Sassoon into two (Jack Lowden, Peter Capaldi) to create a comparably complex personality, but Scott’s Adam is all the more moving for being less refined, a performance of sustained fragility and unmanly truth.
—Armond White, National Review, 29 Dec. 2023
Why is his governess, Mrs. Brock, fired for encouraging Richard’s unmanly interest in poetry and music?
—Francine Prose, The New York Review of Books, 22 Nov. 2018
But the bunt-against-the-shift is the baseball equivalent of the unmanly underhand free throw.
—Scott Ostler, SFChronicle.com, 17 June 2018
Refusing her advances would be awkward, unmanly, gay.
—Peggy Orenstein, The Cut, 8 Mar. 2018
Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 29 May 2026
Clever rather than athletic; also unmanly.
—Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 14 May 2026
In Benediction, Terence Davies had to split Siegfried Sassoon into two (Jack Lowden, Peter Capaldi) to create a comparably complex personality, but Scott’s Adam is all the more moving for being less refined, a performance of sustained fragility and unmanly truth.
—Armond White, National Review, 29 Dec. 2023
Why is his governess, Mrs. Brock, fired for encouraging Richard’s unmanly interest in poetry and music?
—Francine Prose, The New York Review of Books, 22 Nov. 2018
But the bunt-against-the-shift is the baseball equivalent of the unmanly underhand free throw.
—Scott Ostler, SFChronicle.com, 17 June 2018
Refusing her advances would be awkward, unmanly, gay.
—Peggy Orenstein, The Cut, 8 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unmanly
Adjective
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Sybil, who spent her younger years beleaguered by the presence of her double, that emblem of feminine conformity named Désirée, never manages to perceive herself as anything but abnormal by comparison.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 June 2026
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But when Cox was bullied by her peers for acting too feminine, her teachers and mother blamed the abuse on her.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
Adjective
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The term kothi applies to a broad category of people assigned male at birth who are effeminate to varying degrees and might engage in same-sex relationships, but do not live in separate communities.—
Charles Preston,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
28 May 2026
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One of the earliest of American masculinity influencers was President Theodore Roosevelt, who touted his own transformation from a timid, effeminate man – local presses mocked him in his early career – to a rugged outdoorsman.—
Miriam Eve Mora,
The Conversation,
3 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Unmanly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unmanly. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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