# feminine

/ˈfɛmənən/ (US) · /fˈɛmənˌɪn/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/feminine
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. qualities or appearance

adjective · CEFR B1

having qualities or an appearance that people usually think of as belonging to women.

For teachers: having qualities, traits, or an appearance traditionally or stereotypically associated with women.

- The room was decorated in a very feminine style with soft colors and flowers.
- The designer's latest collection explores feminine silhouettes through the use of delicate fabrics and intricate floral embroidery.

### 2. relating to women

adjective · CEFR B1

connected with women or the female sex.

For teachers: pertaining to or characteristic of the female sex or gender.

- In some cultures, certain jobs are still seen as feminine roles.
- The study examines how feminine identity is constructed within professional environments traditionally dominated by men.

### 3. grammar

adjective · CEFR B2 · Technical

belonging to a group of words in some languages that are treated as female.

For teachers: belonging to a grammatical gender class that is distinct from masculine or neuter in many inflected languages.

- In French, the word for 'table' is feminine, so you use 'la' instead of 'le'.
- Learners of German often struggle to remember which nouns require the feminine definite article rather than the masculine or neuter forms.

Usage: In linguistics, this refers to a noun class rather than biological sex.

### 4. the feminine gender

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

the category of feminine words in a language.

For teachers: the feminine grammatical gender or a word belonging to that category.

- The teacher explained how to change an adjective from the masculine to the feminine.
- The evolution of the feminine in Romance languages shows a significant departure from the three-gender system of Classical Latin.

## Examples

- She prefers wearing feminine clothes like floral dresses.
- The interior designer chose soft colors and curved furniture to give the room a more feminine feel.
- Sociologists often distinguish between biological sex and feminine gender roles, which vary significantly across different cultures and historical periods.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.