girlish

[gur-lish]

adjective

1. of, like, or befitting a girl or girlhood.

   girlish laughter.

ˈgirlish

/ ˈɡɜːlɪʃ /

adjective

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

Other Word Forms

• girlishly adverb
• girlishness noun
• ungirlish adjective
• ungirlishly adverb
• ungirlishness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of girlish¹

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

Example Sentences

The odd, wolfish duet floated through the air: this time it was a pair of high-pitched, girlish howls, followed by a deep and manly one.

Read more on Literature

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.

Read more on Salon

Katherine LaNasa’s radiant smile is contagious enough, but when she let out that girlish squeal after a clearly unexpected victory, I felt her excitement in my bones.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

With a gimlet eye and a surprisingly girlish laugh, Vera is cantankerous, impatient, intensely private, unapologetically disheveled and utterly glorious.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

She could be sweet, evil, overbearing, put-upon, thoughtful, impulsive, girlish, vulnerable or manipulative and superimpose selected qualities for extra complexity, always with a compressed energy, obvious or veiled.

Read more on Los Angeles Times