unman

[uhn-man]

See more synonyms for unman on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), un·manned, un·man·ning.

to deprive of courage or fortitude; break down the manly spirit of: Constant conflict finally unmanned him.
to deprive of virility; emasculate; castrate.

Origin of unman

First recorded in 1590–1600; un-² + man¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for unman

discourage, dishearten, unsettle, dampen, dispirit, upset, disorganize, disturb, cripple, deject, daunt, debilitate, embarrass, disconcert, sap, undermine, weaken, unzip, discountenance, rattle

Examples from the Web for unman

Contemporary Examples of unman

And he gasps, a strangled moan … ‘You are going to unman me, Ana … You—take me.’
Speed Read: 12 Naughty Bits From ‘50 Shades Darker’
Lizzie Crocker
May 4, 2012

Historical Examples of unman

He needed it now more than ever, for he feared that the consideration of Cynthia might yet unman him.
The Tavern Knight
Rafael Sabatini
I am unused to such as these, gentlemen,—they unsettle—they unman me.
Sir Brook Fossbrooke, Volume I.
Charles James Lever
At times his emotion seemed to slip from the rein, threatening to unman him.
The Art of Disappearing
John Talbot Smith
No regrets, her father had said; they unman the heart we want for to-morrow.
The Amazing Marriage, Complete
George Meredith
This was a sore blow to Leichhardt, but it did not unman him.
The Australian Explorers
George Grimm

British Dictionary definitions for unman

unman

verb -mans, -manning or -manned (tr)

to cause to lose courage or nerve
to make effeminate
to remove the men from
archaic to deprive of human qualities

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 unman

1590s, "to deprive of the attributes of a human being," from un- (2) + verbal derivative of man (n.). Meaning "to deprive of manly courage" is attested from c.1600; that of "to emasculate" is from 1680s.