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Revised 2024

femalenoun & adjective

What does the word female mean?

There are 24 meanings listed in OED's entry for the word female, three of which are labelled obsolete, and one of which is considered derogatory. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.

female has developed meanings and uses in subjects including

birds (Middle English) plants (Middle English) animals (Middle English) horses and riding (mid 1600s)
See meaning & use

How common is the word female?

About 100occurrences per million words in modern written English
See frequency

How is the word female pronounced?

British English

/ˈfiːmeɪl/
FEE-mayl

U.S. English

/ˈfiˌmeɪl/
FEE-mayl
See pronunciation

Where does the word female come from?

Earliest known use

Middle English

The earliest known use of the word female is in the Middle English period (1150—1500).

OED's earliest evidence for female is from around 1350, in the writing of William of Shoreham, poet.

female is of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from French. Partly a borrowing from Latin.

Etymons: French female, femelle; Latin fēmella.

See etymology

Nearby entries

  1. feltwort, n.Old English–
  2. felty, adj.1846–
  3. felucca, n.1615–
  4. felucca, v.1728–
  5. felwort, n.Old English–
  6. fem, n.²1902–
  7. fem., adj.¹ & n.¹1573–
  8. fem., adj.²1691–
  9. fem, adj.³1975–
  10. FEMA, n.1978–
  11. female, n. & adj.c1350–
  12. female-bane, n.1601–
  13. female bonding, n.1969–
  14. female cadence, n.1930–
  15. female circumcision, n.1697–
  16. female close, n.1928–
  17. female complaints, n.1757–
  18. female condom, n.1982–
  19. female determiner, n.1910–
  20. female-determining, adj.1905–
  21. female ending, n.1727–
Browse more nearby entries