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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masculines
plural
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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
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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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Synonym Usage
See male.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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hypermasculinenessnoun
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hypermasculinitynoun
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masculinenessnoun
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masculinitynoun
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nonmasculinenessnoun
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nonmasculinitynoun
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supermasculinitynoun
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hypermasculineadjective
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nonmasculineadjective
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pseudomasculineadjective
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supermasculineadjective
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ultramasculineadjective
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unmasculineadjective
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hypermasculinelyadverb
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masculinelyadverb
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nonmasculinelyadverb
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unmasculinelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
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
Explanation
If something’s masculine, it’s related to men. When you hear a masculine voice outside greeting your neighbor, you know it’s your dad and not your mom. Masculine can describe people or things that have qualities often associated with men. If someone has a masculine appearance, the person is probably tall and strong. If your new jacket has masculine tailoring, that means it’s cut like a man’s jacket. Masculine can also refer to words. In many languages, words — especially nouns — are given a gender. If you’ve studied French or Spanish, you know you need to figure out which article to use with a masculine noun.
Vocabulary lists containing masculine
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:
Our critic praised the movie, calling it “Simmering and subtly cumulative . . . full of overwhelming anguish, buried beneath a masculine stoicism forever threatening to come undone.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026
He also gives advice on appearing masculine and performs stunts to shock followers.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
She’s repeatedly told me that El-Sayed seems like an overly masculine guy who’s doing a right-wing machismo act.
From Slate ● Oct. 19, 2026
Hartnett stands out among the roster of stubborn, uncompromisingly masculine leading men from his heyday, proving that there’s much more to winning over an audience than simply playing into the public’s perception.
From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026
In saying the melons, you use the plural article, which does not reflect gender and is the same for both the masculine and the feminine.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
The nominative of masculines of the first declension in Α belongs to the Latin, Homeric, Dryopian, Thessalian, Bœotian, Macedonian, and Elean dialects.
From The History and Antiquities of the Doric Race, Vol. 2 of 2 by Karl Otfried Müller
The question ought to be met squarely by the "masculines" as well as by the women.
From History of Woman Suffrage, Volume II by Elizabeth Cady Stanton
We masculines took ourselves off for a while.
From Kitty's Conquest by Charles King
A-h! how popular that will be with poor masculines!
From Bart Ridgeley A Story of Northern Ohio by A. G. Riddle
She had not succeeded in capturing a husband yet, but it seemed quite possible with all this influx of masculines.
From A Little Girl in Old Philadelphia by Amanda Minnie Douglas
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
