What does "girlfriend" mean?

1. (romantic partner) a woman or girl that someone is having a romantic relationship with. 2. (female friend) a woman's female friend. 3. (term of address) a friendly way to address a woman or a gay man.

girlfriend

US //ˈɡɝɫˌfɹɛnd// UK //ɡˈɜːlfɹɛnd// girl·friend

1 romantic partner (n.)
A1 Beginner

a woman or girl that someone is having a romantic relationship with.

a female partner in a non-marital romantic relationship.

Example

He invited his girlfriend to meet his parents for dinner on Saturday.

Example

After dating for nearly three years, he finally introduced his girlfriend to his extended family during the holiday celebrations.
- partner
- significant other
- boyfriend
2 female friend (n.)
B1 Intermediate Informal

a woman's female friend.

a female friend of another female; often used in plural to refer to a social group.

Example

She is going out for coffee with her girlfriends this afternoon.

Example

She maintained a close-knit circle of girlfriends from her university days, meeting them annually for a weekend retreat.
- friend
- companion

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3 term of address (n.)
B2 Upper Intermediate Informal Slang

a friendly way to address a woman or a gay man.

a familiar term of address used among women or within the gay community to signal rapport.

Example

Listen, girlfriend, you need to stop worrying about what he thinks.

Example

The speaker used the term 'girlfriend' as a playful, supportive interjection during their conversation about career goals.
- honey
- friend

Origin

Compound of girl + friend.