un feminine

fem·i·nine

[fem-uh-nin]
adjective
1.
pertaining to a woman or girl: feminine beauty; feminine dress.
2.
having qualities traditionally ascribed to women, as sensitivity or gentleness.
3.
effeminate; womanish: a man with a feminine walk.
4.
belonging to the female sex; female: feminine staff members.
5.
Grammar. noting or pertaining to that one of the three genders of Latin, Greek, German, etc., or one of the two genders of French, Spanish, hebrew, etc., having among its members most nouns referring to females, as well as other nouns, as Latin stella “star,” or German Zeit “time.”
noun Grammar.
6.
the feminine gender.
7.
a noun or other element in or marking that gender.
00:10
Un feminine is always a great word to know.
So is callithumpian. Does it mean:
an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle.
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.

Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French: feminine of feminin < L of fēminīnus, equivalent to fēmin(a) woman (see fetus) + -īnus -ine1

fem·i·nine·ly, adverb
fem·i·nine·ness, noun
an·ti·fem·i·nine, adjective
an·ti·fem·i·nine·ly, adverb
an·ti·fem·i·nine·ness, noun
half-fem·i·nine, adjective
hy·per·fem·i·nine, adjective
hy·per·fem·i·nine·ly, adverb
hy·per·fem·i·nine·ness, noun
o·ver·fem·i·nine, adjective
o·ver·fem·i·nine·ly, adverb
pseu·do·fem·i·nine, adjective
su·per·fem·i·nine, adjective
ul·tra·fem·i·nine, adjective
un·fem·i·nine, adjective
un·fem·i·nine·ly, adverb

1. female, feminine (see synonym study at female) ; 2. effeminate, effete, feminine, womanish, womanly (see synonym study at womanly).


2. See female.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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World English Dictionary
feminine (ˈfɛmɪnɪn) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
adj
1.  suitable to or characteristic of a woman: a feminine fashion
2.  possessing qualities or characteristics considered typical of or appropriate to a woman
3.  effeminate; womanish
4.  grammar
 a.  denoting or belonging to a gender of nouns, occurring in many inflected languages, that includes all kinds of referents as well as some female animate referents
 b.  (as noun): German Zeit ``time'' and Ehe ``marriage'' are feminines
 
[C14: from Latin fēminīnus, from fēmina woman]
 
'femininely
 
adv
 
'feminineness
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

feminine
late 14c., "of the female sex," from O.Fr. feminin, from L. femininus "feminine" (in the grammatical sense at first), from femina "woman, female," lit. "she who suckles," from base of felare "to suck, suckle" (see fecund). Sense of "woman-like, proper to or characteristic
of women" is recorded from mid-15c.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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