Female Meaning

/ˈfiː.meɪl/
A2

Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

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adjBelonging to the sex which typically produces eggs (ova), or to the gender which is typically associated with it.

adjCharacteristic of this sex/gender. (Compare feminine, womanly.)

The socialist was accompanied by a female interpreter.
Only 16 percent of the teachers of this school are female.
One adult female can lay 400 to 500 eggs.
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
The biologist studied the nesting habits of a single ____ bird in the forest.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ lion is responsible for most of the hunting in the pride, working in groups to catch prey.

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁(y)-der. Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁-m̥h₁n-éh₂ Proto-Italic *θēmanā Proto-Italic *fēmanā Latin fēmina Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Latin -lus Latin fēmella Old French femelebor. Middle English femele Middle English female English female From Middle English female, an alteration of Middle English femele, from Old French femele, femelle (“female”), from Medieval Latin fēmella (“a female”), from Latin fēmella (“a girl, a young female, a young woman”), diminutive of fēmina (“a woman”). The English spelling and pronunciation were remodelled under the influence of male, which is otherwise not etymologically related. Contrast woman, which is etymologically built on man (as in, “person”).

"Twice in her thirty-year career she held office in the blacksmiths' guild. Ms. [Fya] upper Bach was no fluke, either: legal and guild records from medieval Germany list other female blacksmiths, coppersmiths, tinsmiths, and pewterers. Some of these redoubtable women gained entry into the guild through "widow's rights"; others, however, made it on sheer mettle and muscle." — 1997, Vicki León, Uppity Women of Medieval Times, Conari Press, →ISBN, page 2:
"I turned to [gender-fluid] Alex. "Hey, are you female today? [...] The Skofnung Sword [...] can't be drawn in the presence of women."" — 2017, Rick Riordan, Magnus Chase and the Hammer of Thor, →ISBN, page 271:
"Some mentioned factional tensions and bullying within the party involving other female MSPs." — 2025 March 23, Libby Brooks and Severin Carrell, “‘Hostile environment’ drives many of SNP’s female MSPs to step down before 2026 vote”, in The Guardian:
"A travelling shot of a harbour view near Sydney's White Bay moves into a domestic interior as a female voice says, 'There was nowhere else to live except alone.'" — 1987, Don't Shoot[,] Darling!: Women's Independent Filmmaking in Australia, page 350:
"More than that, we cannot find the same dynamics within female career trajectories as in the other two country groups, because the time-structure of female and male careers already shows great similarity within the older generation of elites. In addition, the pattern of the relation between female and male careers remains the same over time." — 2004, Mino Vianello, Gwen Moore, Women and Men in Political and Business Elites: A Comparative Study, →ISBN:

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CEFR Practice Quiz
The biologist studied the nesting habits of a single ____ bird in the forest.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ lion is responsible for most of the hunting in the pride, working in groups to catch prey.

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