virginity
Americannoun
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the state or condition of being a virgin.
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the state or condition of being pure, fresh, or unused.
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Informal. any naive, uninitiated, or uninformed state.
noun
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the condition or fact of being a virgin; maidenhood; chastity
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the condition of being untouched, unsullied, etc
Etymology
Origin of virginity
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English virginite, from Anglo-French, Old French, from Latin virginitāt-, stem of virginitās, equivalent to virgin- (stem of virgō virgin ) + -itās -ity
Explanation
Virginity is the condition of never having had sex. Someone who has never had sex is a virgin. The name for this condition is virginity, and it is usually discussed as something that is lost. As soon as someone has sex, they've lost their virginity. Virginity is one of those things that, once lost, can't be regained.
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.
Like many millennials, I grew up at the peak of the American abstinence education movement and the American evangelical obsession with virginity.
From Slate ● Jul. 28, 2026
He has made his daughters pledge their virginity and has monitored his son’s electronic devices to prevent him from accessing adult content.
From Salon ● Feb. 16, 2026
“Bridgerton” showrunner Jess Brownell discusses Season 3, the debate with Shonda Rhimes over Colin’s virginity, Julie Andrews’ fate as narrator and the visual changes coming to Season 4.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2025
One was asceticism, a form of self- denial that includes foregoing bodily pleasures and adopting a life of chastity, virginity, and renunciation of normal society.
From Textbooks ● Apr. 19, 2023
From barren brown stems to glistening leaf-buds; from the leaf-buds to snowy virginity of bloom.
From "Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston
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.
