virilism

[vir-uh-liz-uhm]

noun

1. a female disorder in which there is development of secondary male sexual characteristics, as hirsutism and lowered voice, caused by various conditions affecting hormone regulation.

virilism

/ ˈvɪrɪˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. med the abnormal development in a woman of male secondary sex characteristics

Word History and Origins

Origin of virilism¹

First recorded in 1895–1900; virile + -ism

Example Sentences

“So if we want to go toward equality we have to attack virilism.”

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A woman who is gonad deficient with a superior adrenal will suffer from virilism and specialize in the extreme tactics and mythology of the feminist movement.

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He declared that men had always eaten more meat than women and that “it’s not virilism, it’s nature.”

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If physically feminine—due to adequate feminine reactions on the part of the other endocrines—she will at least show the qualities of a psychic virilism.

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