| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| female |
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| SYLLABICATION: | fe·male |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  f  m l |
| ADJECTIVE: | 1a. Of or denoting the sex that produces ova or bears young. b. Characteristic of or appropriate to this sex; feminine. c. Consisting of members of this sex. See Usage Note at lady. 2. Botany a. Designating an organ, such as a pistil or ovary, that functions in producing seeds after fertilization. b. Bearing pistils but not stamens; pistillate: female flowers. 3. Having a recessed part, such as a slot or receptacle, designed to receive a complementary male part: the female section of an electrical outlet. | | NOUN: | 1. A member of the sex that produces ova or bears young. 2. A woman or girl. 3. Botany A plant having only pistillate flowers. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English, alteration (influenced by male, male) of femelle, from Old French, from Latin fmella, diminutive of fmina, woman. See dh(i)- in Appendix I. | | OTHER FORMS: | femaleness —NOUN
| | SYNONYMS: | female, feminine, womanlike, womanly, womanish, effeminate, ladylike These adjectives mean of or characteristic of women. Female categorizes any living thing by gender or sex: the female population; a female kitten; a female plant. Feminine refers to what is considered characteristic of women: feminine intuition. Womanlike applies to qualities of a woman: womanlike resolve. Womanly describes qualities regarded as becoming to a woman: womanly sympathy. Womanish suggests qualities associated with or suggestive of women: womanish attitudes. Effeminate applies to men who exhibit attributes traditionally associated with women: an effeminate actor. Ladylike applies to what is regarded as befitting refined or well-mannered women: ladylike manners.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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