girlish

American

[gur-lish] / ˈgɜr lɪʃ /

adjective

of, like, or befitting a girl or girlhood.

girlish laughter.

girlish British

/ ˈɡɜːlɪʃ /

adjective

of or like a girl in looks, behaviour, innocence, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of girlish

First recorded in 1555–65; girl + -ish ¹

Vocabulary lists containing girlish

Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -ish

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

girlish

Isolde is a mercurial character, and Ms. Davidsen expressed her simmering rage, her girlish flirtatiousness, and her serenity in the “Liebestod.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026

Hello Kitty launched as the Japanese 'kawaii' culture — a hyperfeminine, girlish aesthetic — gained popularity across the world.

From BBC ● Feb. 13, 2026

Wittingly or not, Gaines seems to understand that her ability to play the “victim” of these supposedly demonic trans forces depends on presenting herself as girlish.

From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2025

Often, Bannon will toss the mic, virtually, to his 23-year-old co-host Natalie Winters, a blond Californian who has a side business selling a girlish right-wing clothing line.

From Slate ● Nov. 25, 2024

She had no idea what she was attracted to—the boyish girl, the girlish boy—and eventually she decided it didn’t really matter.

From "Every Day" by David Levithan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023