masculine Hear it!

masculine Definition

mas·cu·line (maskyo̵̅o̅ lin, -kyə-)

adjective

  1. male; of men or boys
  2. having qualities regarded as characteristic of men and boys, as strength, vigor, boldness, etc.; manly; virile
  3. suitable to or characteristic of a man
  4. mannish: said of women
  5. Gram. designating, of, or belonging to the gender of words denoting or referring to males, as well as many other words to which no distinction of sex is attributed
  6. Music designating or of a cadence ending on an accented note or chord
  7. Prosody
    1. ending with a stressed syllable, as a line of verse
    2. designating or of rhyme in which the rhyming elements are stressed final syllables (Ex.: hill, fill, enjoy, destroy)

Etymology: ME masculyn < OFr masculin < L masculinus < masculus, male < mas, male

noun

  1. the masculine gender
  2. a word or form in this gender

masculine Related Forms

mas·cu·linely adverb mas′·cu·lin·ity noun

masculine Synonyms

masculine

modif.

  1. Male

    male, virile, generative, potent; see male.

  2. Having qualities stereotypically associated with men

    virile, manly, mannish, gentlemanly, strong, vigorous, brawny, muscular, broad-shouldered, powerful, forceful, macho, red-blooded*, two-fisted*; see also manly.

    Antonyms feminine, effeminate, unmanly. See syn. study at male.male.

masculine Usage Examples

Adjective modifier

generic: The Path of Prudence There are, as Miss Reames points out, ways to avoid generic masculines without resorting to linguistic monstrosities.

Adjective complement with noun phrase

make: Gender means making the adjective masculine or feminine to agree with the noun.

Modifies a noun

  • pronoun: He employs the masculine pronoun which covers all human souls.
  • noun: You make the choice depending on how the masculine noun begins.
  • gender: Words importing the masculine gender only shall include the feminine gender.
  • fragrance: Miracle by Lancome is a refined, subtle and masculine fragrance.
  • scent: This masculine scent is a blend of spices... .
  • trait: Would they see ' aggression ' as a desirable masculine trait, for example?

Modifying Another Word

  • either: Here are some examples: table, car, dog, brother, etc. In French all nouns are either masculine or feminine.
  • very: In the week of the left jab, it's still a very masculine affair.
  • quite: There is something quite masculine about all these writers.
  • distinctly: Distinctly masculine, this fragrance is for sensible and confident men.
  • traditionally: Target Heads ( 12 ) is an assemblage that is clearly evocative of the traditionally masculine domains of heavy engineering and weaponry.
  • largely: Technology has become deeply imbued with its largely masculine practice.

Used with adjective complement

  • become: Thus the drawing room became very feminine in style whilst the dining room became more masculine.
  • look: A canvas tote will look suitably masculine, especially with a navy trim.
  • appear: You previously remarked that you never do drag because it makes you appear more masculine.
  • consider: What may be considered masculine in one culture, in another may be the opposite.

Preposition: in

  • design: The watch is very masculine in design and stature.
  • appearance: These cherubs are both shown as masculine in appearance, just as Yehouah is always taken to be masculine in every respect.

Browse dictionary entries near masculine

  1. mascot
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  3. Mascarene Islands
  4. mascara
  5. Mascagni
  6. masc
  7. Masbate
  8. Masaryk
  9. masala
  10. Masai
  1. masculinity
  2. masculinize
  3. Masefield
  4. maser
  5. Maseru
  6. mash
  7. mash note
  8. mashed
  9. masher
  10. Mashhad