tomboy
Americannoun
-
tomboys
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of tomboy
Explanation
A girl who dresses or acts in a stereotypically boyish way is often called a tomboy. Some famous literary tomboys include Scout from "To Kill a Mockingbird" and Jo from "Little Women." The word tomboy first appeared some time in the 1500s, meaning "wild, romping girl who acts like a boy." In nineteenth century America, being a tomboy was seen by many as extremely healthy for girls who were otherwise not encouraged to exercise outdoors. Wearing less constrictive clothes and actually playing gave tomboys experiences similar to those of boys — at least before they were expected to grow up and be "feminine."
Vocabulary lists containing tomboy
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:
"I thought I was the tomboy, the only girl that played in the football team, then this little upstart popped up," Westbury tells BBC Sport.
From BBC ● May 20, 2025
Da Brat said she had been fortunate to have the producer Jermaine Dupri as a mentor who never tried to change her tomboy image during the height of her career.
From New York Times ● Jan. 24, 2024
Ever the curious tomboy, I asked, “Is that an old temple?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 14, 2023
So, I always considered myself a tomboy, but I still like to dress up and be sparkly with rhinestones and glitter and fringe and all that kind of stuff.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 5, 2023
In truth, I was more tomboy than lady, despite being past my tenth year.
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
Born 10 years earlier, we would have been called tomboys.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026
The sisters, who were "tomboys from the time we were little kids", were "constantly reminded we don't fit in," says Alisa.
From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2023
Like most fictional tomboys until then, Jo was a white, working-class brunette with a blond, rich girly-girl nemesis, Blair.
From New York Times ● Feb. 11, 2020
“So tomboys are in the middle?” one girl asked.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 17, 2019
I know he's going to be great fun, only I'm afraid he'll think we are hopeless tomboys.
From In Blue Creek Cañon by Ray, Anna Chapin
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.
