FEMALE

female

(adjective) being the sex (of plant or animal) that produces fertilizable gametes (ova) from which offspring develop; “a female heir”; “female holly trees bear the berries”

female

(adjective) for or pertaining to or composed of women or girls; “the female lead in the play”; “a female chorus”

female, distaff

(adjective) characteristic of or peculiar to a woman; “female sensitiveness”; “female suffrage”

female

(noun) an animal that produces gametes (ova) that can be fertilized by male gametes (spermatozoa)

female, female person

(noun) a person who belongs to the sex that can have babies

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology

Adjective

female (not generally comparable, comparative femaler or more female, superlative femalest or most female)

Belonging to the sex which typically produces eggs (ova), or to the gender which is typically associated with it. [from 14th c.]

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

Tending to lead to or regulate the development of sexual characteristics typical of this sex.

(grammar, less common than 'feminine') Feminine; of the feminine grammatical gender.

(figuratively) Having an internal socket, as in a connector or pipe fitting. [from 16th c.]

Synonyms

• womanly, feminine

• (figurative: of pipes, etc): socket

Coordinate terms

• male; androgynous; intersex; non-binary

• (grammar): see feminine

Noun

female (plural females)

One of the female (feminine) sex or gender.

(sometimes offensive, see usage notes) A human member of the feminine sex or gender.

An animal of the sex that produces eggs.

(botany) A plant which produces only that kind of reproductive organ capable of developing into fruit after impregnation or fertilization; a pistillate plant.

Usage notes

Due to its zoological use, some find it dehumanizing to refer to women as "females", especially in non-technical contexts.

Hyponyms

• girl; see also girl

• woman; see also woman

Source: Wiktionary

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Fe"male, n. Etym: [OE. femel, femal, F. femelle, fr. L. femella, dim. of femina woman. See Feminine.]

1. An individual of the sex which conceives and brings forth young, or (in a wider sense) which has an ovary and produces ova. The male and female of each living thing. Drayton.

2. (Bot.)

Definition: A plant which produces only that kind of reproductive organs which are capable of developing into fruit after impregnation or fertilization; a pistillate plant.

Fe"male, a.

1. Belonging to the sex which conceives and gives birth to young, or (in a wider sense) which produces ova; not male. As patient as the female dove When that her golden couplets are disclosed. Shak.

2. Belonging to an individual of the female sex; characteristic of woman; feminine; as, female tenderness. "Female usurpation.'b8 Milton. To the generous decision of a female mind, we owe the discovery of America. Belknap.

3. (Bot.)

Definition: Having pistils and no stamens; pistillate; or, in cryptogamous plants, capable of receiving fertilization.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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