feminine

English

/ˈfɛmɪnɪn/

adj
Definitions
  • Of or pertaining to the female gender; womanly.
  • Of or pertaining to the female sex; biologically female, not male.
  • Belonging to females; typically used by females.
  • Having the qualities stereotypically associated with women: nurturing, not aggressive.
  • (grammar) Of, pertaining or belonging to the female grammatical gender, in languages that have gender distinctions.

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English feminine derived from Old French feminin derived from Latin fēminīnus (feminine) derived from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-m̥h₁n-eh₂ (nursing, breastfeeding), *dʰeh₁(y)- (suckle, suck, nurse, suck milk).

Origin

Proto-Indo-European

*dʰeh₁(y)-

Gloss

suckle, suck, nurse, suck milk

Concept
Semantic Field

Basic actions and technology

Ontological Category

Action/Process

Kanji

哺

Emoji

Timeline

Distribution of cognates by language

Geogrpahic distribution of cognates

Cognates and derived terms