masculine
Americanadjective
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pertaining to or characteristic of a man or men.
masculine attire.
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having qualities traditionally ascribed to men, as strength and boldness.
- Synonyms:
- manly
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Grammar. noting or pertaining to the gender of Latin, Greek, German, French, Spanish, Hebrew, etc., which has among its members most nouns referring to males, as well as other nouns, as Spanish dedo, “finger,” German Bleistift, “pencil.”
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(of a woman) mannish.
noun
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the masculine gender.
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a noun or other element in or marking that gender.
adjective
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possessing qualities or characteristics considered typical of or appropriate to a man; manly
-
unwomanly
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grammar
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denoting a gender of nouns, occurring in many inflected languages, that includes all kinds of referents as well as some male animate referents
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( as noun )
German ``Weg'' is a masculine
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Related Words
See male.
Other Word Forms
- hypermasculine adjective
- hypermasculinely adverb
- hypermasculineness noun
- hypermasculinity noun
- masculinely adverb
- masculineness noun
- masculinity noun
- nonmasculine adjective
- nonmasculinely adverb
- nonmasculineness noun
- nonmasculinity noun
- pseudomasculine adjective
- supermasculine adjective
- supermasculinity noun
- ultramasculine adjective
- unmasculine adjective
- unmasculinely adverb
Etymology
Origin of masculine
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English masculin, from Latin masculīnus, equivalent to mascul(us) “male” ( mās “male” + -culus -cule 1 ) + -īnus -ine 1
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.
"He kind of just fit a masculine action-star stereotype... I'm pretty much positive none of us could name a movie he'd been in."
From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026
Even Mathew Knowles has publicly fiddled with the true name of his diagnosis, opting instead for the not-quite-accurate “chest cancer” and also “male breast cancer,” which falsely implies a masculine version of the disease.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026
Hegseth flippantly employed villainous colloquialism – “they are toast and they know it,” “we play for keeps,” and “President Trump got the last laugh” – delivered with a combative tone that communicated masculine self-assurance.
From Salon • Mar. 10, 2026
A German listener can instantly narrow the options, ruling out masculine or neuter singular nouns.
From Science Daily • Feb. 20, 2026
Her sister had married the ideal in masculine beauty, the thin scholar with the hollow cheeks and the long fingers.
From "The Woman Warrior" by Maxine Hong Kingston
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
