ladylike
Americanadjective
-
like a lady.
- Synonyms:
- courteous, well-mannered, well-bred
-
befitting a lady.
in a ladylike manner.
- Synonyms:
- courteous, well-mannered, well-bred
adjective
-
like or befitting a lady in manners and bearing; refined and fastidious
-
derogatory (of a man) effeminate
Other Word Forms
- ladylikeness noun
- unladylike adjective
Etymology
Origin of ladylike
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.
But since I wasn’t that connected to Gerry, they were very pleased I was very ladylike.
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 10, 2023
"I was raised to be very ladylike and considerate of others, and respectable. My mother definitely would have liked me to go into more a feminine field," she says.
From BBC • May 17, 2023
When he met Annie, she struck him as “very ladylike and very nice, very sweet. Soft-spoken.”
From Washington Post • Oct. 13, 2022
Both feature glamorous black-and-white photos of bejeweled princesses; both titles are printed in ladylike pastels.
From New York Times • Mar. 15, 2021
Mother’s shyness and ladylike demeanor had a quieting effect on him, and he was displaying his most genteel behavior.
From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
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.
