femininity

femininity
/fem'euh nin"i tee/, n.
1. the quality of being feminine; womanliness.
2. women collectively.
3. effeminacy.
Also, feminity /fi min"i tee/.
[1350-1400; ME femininite. See FEMININE, -ITY]

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Femininity — (also called womanliness) refers to qualities and behaviors judged by a particular culture to be ideally associated with or especially appropriate to women and girls. Distinct from femaleness, which is a biological and physiological… …   Wikipedia

  • Femininity — Fem i*nin i*ty, n. 1. The quality or nature of the female sex; womanliness. [1913 Webster] 2. The female form. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] O serpent under femininitee. Chaucer. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • femininity — late 14c., femynynytee, from FEMININE (Cf. feminine) + ITY (Cf. ity) …   Etymology dictionary

  • femininity — / feminine [n/adj] womanly effeminate, effete, fertile, gender, gynic, womanhood, womanish, womanliness; concepts 371,372,408,648 Ant. masculinity …   New thesaurus

  • femininity — [[t]fe̱mɪnɪ̱nɪti[/t]] 1) N UNCOUNT A woman s femininity is the fact that she is a woman. ...the drudgery behind the ideology of motherhood and femininity. Ant: masculinity 2) N UNCOUNT Femininity means the qualities that are considered to be… …   English dictionary

  • femininity — A summary term, contrasted with masculinity , for the distinctive ways of acting and feeling on the part of women. Precisely what characteristics are listed varies, though passivity, dependence, and weakness are usually mentioned. Sociologists… …   Dictionary of sociology

  • femininity — feminineness, feminism, femininity These are the only survivors from a whole host of 19c formations which also included feminacy, feminality, feminility, and femininitude (the last a nonce word used in 1878). Feminineness and femininity have much …   Modern English usage

  • femininity — fem|i|nin|i|ty [ˌfemıˈnınıti] n [U] qualities that are considered to be typical of women, especially qualities that are gentle, delicate, and pretty →↑masculinity ▪ You don t have to lose your femininity to be an independent, successful woman …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • femininity — noun (U) qualities that are considered to be typical of women, especially qualities that are gentle, delicate, and pretty: Different cultures often have different concepts of femininity and masculinity …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • femininity — feminine ► ADJECTIVE 1) having qualities traditionally associated with women, especially delicacy and prettiness. 2) female. 3) Grammar referring to a gender of nouns and adjectives, conventionally regarded as female. ► NOUN (the feminine) ▪ the… …   English terms dictionary

  • femininity — noun Date: 14th century 1. the quality or nature of the female sex 2. effeminacy 3. women, womankind …   New Collegiate Dictionary

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