tomboy

[tom-boi]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tomboy ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

an energetic, sometimes boisterous girl whose behavior and pursuits, especially in games and sports, are considered more typical of boys than of girls.

Origin of tomboy

First recorded in 1545–55; Tom + boy

Related formstom·boy·ish, adjectivetom·boy·ish·ly, adverbtom·boy·ish·ness, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for tomboyish

macho, male, manly, masculine, butch, hoydenish, unfeminine

Examples from the Web for tomboyish

Contemporary Examples of tomboyish

There she was—tomboyish and slight—beside her mother, who was stitching.
On Yom Kippur, Remember My Palestinian Mother
Samer Badawi
September 10, 2013
Tough and tomboyish, she has participated in protests against pageants.
Models vs. Militants: Nisha Pahuja’s Film Shows Two Worlds of Indian Women
Abigail Pesta
May 5, 2012
First there was Sarah Silverman, girly-voiced, tomboyish and potty-mouthed—the guys loved her.
How Stand-Up Got Sexy
Yael Kohen
September 24, 2011

Historical Examples of tomboyish

Would she be fair or dark, and would her ways be gentle or tomboyish?
The Love Story of Abner Stone
Edwin Carlile Litsey
You can't keep up such a tomboyish trick all your life, and now is a good time to begin, I think.
We Ten
Lyda Farrington Kraus
She was not a pretty girl, but was a tremendously healthy one--strong, well developed, and tomboyish in her activities.
The Girls of Central High Aiding the Red Cross
Gertrude W. Morrison
She has dropped that hoydenish, tomboyish manner that was so offensive when she returned from the ranch.
Blue Bonnet in Boston
Caroline E. Jacobs
She was not particularly drawn to merry, tomboyish Sahwah, because she was not musical, although they got along.
The Camp Fire Girls' Larks and Pranks
Hildegard G. Frey

British Dictionary definitions for tomboyish

tomboy

noun

a girl who acts or dresses in a boyish way, liking rough outdoor activities

Derived Formstomboyish, adjectivetomboyishly, adverbtomboyishness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for tomboyish

tomboy

1550s, "rude, boisterous boy," from Tom + boy; meaning "bold or immodest woman" is attested from 1570s; that of "girl who acts like a spirited boy" is first recorded 1590s.