lesbian - 10 dictionary results
Les⋅bi⋅an
[lez-bee-uh
n] 
–adjective
| 1. | of or pertaining to Lesbos. |
| 2. | (usually lowercase) of, pertaining to, or characteristic of female homosexuality. |
| 3. | (usually lowercase) erotic; sensual. |
–noun
| 4. | an inhabitant of Lesbos. |
| 5. | (usually lowercase) a female homosexual. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To lesbian
| les·bi·an (lěz'bē-ən) n. A woman whose sexual orientation is to women. adj. Of, relating to, or being a lesbian. See Usage Note at gay. [From the putative homosexuality of Sappho, lyric poet of Lesbos.] |
| Les·bi·an (lěz'bē-ən) n.
[From Latin Lesbius, from Greek Lesbios, from Lesbos.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Lesbian
Les"bi*an\ (l[e^]s"b[i^]*an), a. Of or pertaining to the island anciently called Lesbos, now Mitylene, in the Grecian Archipelago.Lesbian
Les"bi*an\, a. Amatory; erotic; -- in allusion to the reputed sensuality of the Lesbian people and literature; as, Lesbian novels.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : lesbian
Spanish:
homosexual,
German:
der Schwule,
Japanese:
同性愛者
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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lesbian (adj.)
1591, from L. Lesbius, from Gk. lesbios "of Lesbos," Gk. island in northeastern Aegean Sea, home of Sappho, great lyric poet whose erotic and romantic verse embraced women as well as men, hence meaning "relating to homosexual relations between women" (1890; lesbianism in this sense is attested from 1870) and the noun, first recorded 1925. Slang variant lez, les is from 1929; lesbo first attested 1940. Before this, the principal fig. use (common in 17c.) was lesbian rule (1601) a mason's rule of lead, of a type used on Lesbos, which could be bent to fit the curves of a molding; hence, "pliant morality or judgment."
"And this is the nature of the equitable, a correction of law where it is defective owing to its universality. ... For when the thing is indefinite the rule also is indefinite, like the leaden rule used in making the Lesbian moulding; the rule adapts itself to the shape of the stone and is not rigid, and so too the decree is adapted to the facts." [Aristotle, "Nicomachean Ethics"]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: 1les·bi·an
Pronunciation: 'lez-bE-&n
Function: adjective
often capitalized : of or relating to homosexualitybetween females
Main Entry: 2lesbian
Function: noun
often capitalized : a female homosexual called also sapphic, sapphist
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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lesbian les·bi·an (lěz'bē-ən)
n.
A gay or homosexual woman. adj.
Of, relating to, or being a lesbian.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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