androgynous

androgynous Definition

an·drogy·nous (an drä′jə nəs)

adjective

both male and female in one; hermaphroditic
Bot. bearing both staminate and pistillate flowers in the same inflorescence or cluster
1. of or marked by a blend of male and female characteristics, roles, etc. an androgynous culture
2. designating or of something that is not differentiated as to sex androgynous clothing

Etymology: L androgynus < Gr androgynos: see andro- & -gynous

androgynous Related Forms

an·drog′y·ny (-jə nē) noun

androgynous Synonyms

modif.

androgynous Usage Examples

Modifies a noun

figure: A figure in white descends a staircase to lecture two androgynous figures in baby clothes.
look: His androgynous looks and get up have earned Brian Molko quite a reputation for being notorious.
woman: Meg asks Lizzie why Hannah has the frame which held Sid's photo, which now holds a snapshot of an ambiguously androgynous woman.
singer: Apart from an androgynous singer, a sackful of killer lines and some seriously messed-up pop songs, there's also The Voice.
appearance: The sixties also saw the advent of ' unisex ' , many youngsters taking on an androgynous appearance.
name: Fortunately we gave her an androgynous name tho the spelling stuck.

Modifying Another Word

slightly: Like upwardly mobile, young, I don't know, slightly androgynous... SP: Driven.
quite: I was drawn to her a because she was an unusual woman - quite androgynous then and did material I still think is great.
highly: Are highly androgynous men happy to change a baby's diapers?
also: The figure is also androgynous, that state of the Spirit where the Opposites are transcended.

Used with adjective complement

become: We girls could emulate men only by becoming androgynous, and once grown into women even this escape is denied us.

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