femme
/fɛm/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.19 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
1
Syllables
3
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A lesbian or other queer woman whose appearance, identity etc. is seen as feminine as opposed to butch.
adj
Characteristic of a feminine lesbian or queer woman.
verb
To feminize.
Example Sentences
- "Then I turned to him and said, "O my lord, I have that to propose to thee wherein thou must not cross me; and this it is that, when we reach Baghdad, my native city, I offer thee my life as thy handmaiden in holy matrimony, and thou shalt be to me baron and I will be femme to thee.""
- "Theodore J. Flicker and George Kirgo have penned a good script in which Elvis is played off against four femmes […]."
- "Near-synonym: lipstick lesbian (sometimes differentiated)"
- "Some of the most political dykes in town had already converted, tossing out their Levi's and Birkenstocks in favor of poodle skirts and heels. It was no longer a question of butch vs. femme, liberations vs. oppression. Clothes did not unmake the woman; clothes were just clothes."
- "Monique whispered something to a butch sitting near her. The butch crossed the room and approached our table. “Hey,” she called to me. I didn't look up. “Hey, femme, you wanna dance with a real butch?”"
- "Given the myth that lesbian femmes will eventually leave their butches for men, there is an understandable unwillingness to acknowledge bisexual femmes, who really might do it — as indeed they have every right to."
Etymology
Origin
Word Breakdown
Usage
- American usage
- Derogatory
- Canadian usage
Inflected Forms
femmes (plural)
more femme (comparative)
most femme (superlative)
femmes (present, singular)
femming (participle, present)
femmed (participle, past)
femmed (past)
Derived Forms
Phrases
Frequently Paired Words
Synonyms
fem
lipstick lesbian[lipstick lesbian