Top Qs
Timeline
Chat
Perspective
male
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
Remove ads
See also: Appendix:Variations of "male"
Languages (23)
English
Afar • Albanian • Danish • Dutch • Esperanto • Estonian • German • Hawaiian • Italian • Latin • Limburgish • Middle English • Middle High German • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Old English • Old French • Pali • Polish • Sardinian • Serbo-Croatian • Toba Batak
Page categories
Afar • Albanian • Danish • Dutch • Esperanto • Estonian • German • Hawaiian • Italian • Latin • Limburgish • Middle English • Middle High German • Norwegian Bokmål • Norwegian Nynorsk • Old English • Old French • Pali • Polish • Sardinian • Serbo-Croatian • Toba Batak
Page categories
Remove ads
English
Etymology
Etymology tree
From Middle English male, borrowed from Old French malle, masle (Modern French mâle), from Latin masculus (“masculine, a male”), diminutive of mās (“male, masculine”). Doublet of macho. Displaced native Old English wǣpned (“male”, literally “weaponed”).
Pronunciation
Adjective
male (not generally comparable, comparative maler or more male, superlative malest or most male)
- Belonging to the sex which typically produces sperm, or to the gender which is typically associated with it. [from 14th c.]
- male writers
- the leading male and female singers
- a male bird feeding a seed to a female
- in bee colonies, all drones are male
- intersex male patients
- 1995, Gill Van Hasselt, Childbirth: Your Choices for Managing Pain, Taylor Pub, →ISBN:
- We got the hang of [caring for a baby], Kate and I, with some quiet, surprising guidance from a gentle male nurse whose touching lack of intrusion was so instinctive as to seem part of the pattern.
- 2016, Tobias Raun, Out Online, →ISBN:
- Whereas many other trans male vloggers use the videos to assert a conventionally recognizable masculinity through sculpting and carrying their bodies as well as dressing and talking in masculine-coded ways, Carson explores and plays with ways of expressing femininity within (trans) maleness.
- For more quotations using this term, see Citations:male.
- Characteristic of this sex/gender. (Compare masculine, manly.)
- stereotypically male interests, an insect with typically male coloration
- 2006, Bonnie Roberts, Bruises on the Heart, →ISBN, page 118:
- A bright light was shone in her eye and then she heard a kind, male voice who she figured must be Dr. Smith. “Yes, let her rest now, but keep an eye on her blood pressure and her pulse. Check her about every 15 or 20 minutes. Call me if any problem occurs.”
- 2004, Mino Vianello, Gwen Moore, Women and Men in Political and Business Elites: A Comparative Study, →ISBN:
- 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.
- For more quotations using this term, see Citations:male.
- Tending to lead to or regulate the development of sexual characteristics typical of this sex.
- the male chromosome; like testes, ovaries also produce testosterone and some other male hormones
- (grammar, less common than 'masculine') Masculine; of the masculine grammatical gender.
- 2012, Naomi McIlwraith, Kiyâm: Poems, →ISBN, page 43:
- The teacher's voice inflects the pulse of nêhiyawêwin as he teaches us. He says a prayer in the first class. Nouns, we learn, have a gender. In French, nouns are male or female, but in Cree, nouns are living or non-living, animate or inanimate.
- 2012, Sinéad Leleu, Michaela Greck-Ismair, German Pen Pals Made Easy KS3:
- If you are describing a female noun, you must make the adjective feminine by adding an 'e'. If you describe a male noun, you add an 'er'. For neutral nouns you add an 'es'.
- (of bacteria) Having the F factor; able to impart DNA into another bacterium which does not have the F factor (a female).
- 1967, Symposium on Infectious Multiple Drug Resistance: Genetics, Molecular Nature, and Clinical Implications of R Factors, May 25, 1967, page 7:
- Furthermore, male bacteria with fi + R factors, which inhibit the function of F (fi fertility inhibition) (Watanabe et al., 1964a), cannot form specific cell pairs at high frequencies. On the contrary, the formation of […]
- (Can we date this quote?), The genetics problem solver, Research & Education Assoc., →ISBN, page 443:
- Male bacteria having the sex factor, also known as the F or "fertility" factor, are termed P if the sex factor exists extrachromosomally. F+ bacteria can only conjugate with F, the female counterparts, which do not possess the F [factor].
- (figuratively) Of instruments, tools, or connectors: designed to fit into or penetrate a female counterpart, as in a connector, pipe fitting or laboratory glassware. [from 16th c.]
- 1982, Popular Science, page 119:
- Male adapter connects female pipe threads to polyethylene cold-water pipe; [...] female flare coupling connects male pipe threads to flared copper or plastic;
Synonyms
Coordinate terms
- female; androgynous; intersex; non-binary
- (grammar): female: see also masculine
Translations
belonging to the sex which typically produces sperm, or the gender typically associated with it
|
characteristic of this sex/gender
tending to lead to or regulate the development of sexual characteristics
grammatically masculine — see masculine
having an external plug
|
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
|
Noun
male (plural males)
- One of the male (masculine) sex or gender.
- A human member of the masculine sex or gender.
- For quotations using this term, see Citations:male.
- An animal of the sex that has testes.
- A plant of the masculine sex.
- A human member of the masculine sex or gender.
- A bacterium which has the F factor.
- 2001 August 1, Harrison G. Echols, Operators and Promoters: The Story of Molecular Biology and Its Creators, Univ of California Press, →ISBN, page 45:
- During mating, F+ male bacteria transfer the F factor to the recipient females, transforming them into F+ males. Males also retain a copy of their F factor for themselves (left). When Hfr (or high frequency recombination) males mate […]
- 2021 February 26, Gregor Majdic, Soul Mate Biology: Science of attachment and love, Springer Nature, →ISBN, page 10:
- In this process, one bacterium designated the male bacterium transfers its DNA into the female bacterium. Bacteria are determined to be male or female by a small piece of DNA, called F-plasmid, or sex factor. Bacteria with this small piece of DNA are labeled as males, and bacteria that do not have this factor are considered females. […] Nevertheless, in addition to a small piece of DNA, male bacteria have some unique characteristics. They can make a special protrusion on their surface, called F-pilus. Pilae (plural for pilus) are hair-like structures that cover the […]
- A male connector, pipe fitting, etc.
- 1981, Modern Photography:
- Work another rubber washer over the threads of the male adapter that is now sticking out of the bucket. […] cut out with an X-acto knife, then thread the female fittings to the males.
Usage notes
- Similar to objections over the usage of female(s) as a noun, some people find it dehumanizing to refer to men as "male(s)" due to its zoological use, especially in non-technical contexts. It is frequently used in police blotters, dispatches, reports, and legal, medical, or physiological documents to encompass boys and men, further fueling aversion through this association with criminality and/or vice.
Antonyms
Hyponyms
Translations
human of masculine sex or gender
| ||||||||
animal of masculine sex
|
plant of masculine sex
|
male connector
|
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
|
Derived terms
terms derived from adjective or noun
- all-male
- alpha male
- alta-male
- angry white male
- antimale, anti-male
- beta male
- bio male, bio-male
- cis male, cis-male
- dead white European male
- delta male
- female-to-male
- gamma male
- heteromale
- intermale
- irritable male syndrome
- ktiv male
- male-administration
- male alpha
- male answer syndrome
- male as norm
- male-assigned
- male bot
- male-bot
- malebot
- male chauvinism
- male chauvinist
- male chauvinistic
- male circumcision
- male condom
- maledom
- male-dominated
- male engyne
- male enhancement
- male-fail
- male fern
- male flight
- male gaze
- male-gazey
- male genital cutting
- male genital mutilation
- male genital mutilator
- male-identified
- male impersonator
- maleless
- male liberation
- male member
- male menopause
- male menstruation
- maleness
- maleocracy
- male organ
- male pattern baldness
- male pattern violence, male-pattern violence
- male rhyme
- malestream
- malesub
- male tank
- male-to-female
- male-to-male cable
- male-to-male cord
- merm
- metamale
- mimbo
- moid
- multimale
- murse
- neomale
- nonmale
- nu-male
- omega male
- pale male
- pseudomale
- shemale
- she-male
- sigma male
- sneaker male
- supermale
- trans-identified male
- trans male
- trans-male
- XX male syndrome
See also
- macho
- ♂ (symbol for male)
- sex, gender, gender identity
Anagrams
Remove ads
Afar
Pronunciation
Particle
malé
- alternative form of maléey
References
Albanian
Noun
male
Danish
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Middle Low German mālen (“to draw, paint”), from Old Saxon mālōn, from Proto-West Germanic *mālōn, from Proto-Germanic *mēlōną, which could be related to *mailą (“spot, blemish, mark”). Cognate with Icelandic mála (“to paint”).
Verb
male (imperative mal, present maler, past malede or malte, past participle malet or malt)
- to paint
Conjugation
Derived terms
Etymology 2
From Old Norse mala, from Proto-Germanic *malaną (“to grind”), from Proto-Indo-European *melh₂- (“to grind, rub, break up”). Cognate with Icelandic mala.
Verb
male (imperative mal, infinitive at male, present tense maler, past tense malede, perfect tense malet)
Conjugation
Derived terms
- maling (“grinding”)
References
- “male” in Den Danske Ordbog
Remove ads
Dutch
Pronunciation
Audio: (file)
Noun
male
Verb
male
Esperanto
Etymology
Pronunciation
Adverb
male
- on the contrary
- opposingly; in opposition
- male ol... ― as opposed to...
Estonian
Etymology
From malev (“army”), a word attested in the 13th century Livonian Chronicle of Henry. Coined by Ado Grenzstein in the 19th century.
Noun
male (genitive male, partitive malet)
Declension
See also
| Chess pieces in Estonian · malendid (see also: male) (layout · text) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| kuningas | lipp | vanker | oda | ratsu | ettur |
Remove ads
German
Pronunciation
Verb
male
- inflection of malen:
Hawaiian
Etymology 1
From Proto-Polynesian *male (“cough”).
Noun
male
- phlegm (mucus from the lungs or throat)
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
Verb
male
- (transitive) to marry
Derived terms
- hoʻomale (“marry off”, verb)
- male ʻana (“marriage”)
- male ʻole (“unmarried”)
Noun
male
Derived terms
- ʻahaʻaina male (“wedding reception”)
- hoa male (“spouse”)
- male lehulehu (“polygamy”)
Further reading
- male in Combined Hawaiian Dictionary, at trussel2.com.
Italian
Etymology
Pronunciation
Adverb
male (comparative peggio, superlative malissimo)
Noun
male m (plural mali)
Antonyms
Derived terms
- andare a male
- far male
- farsi male
- finire male
- grande male
- mal d'auto
- mal di denti
- mal di fegato
- mal di fuso
- mal di gola
- mal di mare
- mal di pancia
- mal di schiena
- mal di stomaco
- mal di testa
- mal di vivere
- meno male
- mica male
- niente male
- non c'è male
- parlare male
- poco male
- restare male
Related terms
Adjective
male
See also
Anagrams
Remove ads
Latin
Etymology
From malus (“bad, wicked”).
Pronunciation
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): [ˈma.ɫɛ]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): [ˈmaː.le]
Adverb
male (comparative peius, superlative pessimē)
Derived terms
Related terms
Descendants
References
- “male”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- “male”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- "male", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
- Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book, London: Macmillan and Co.
- (ambiguous) to deserve ill of a person; to treat badly: male mereri de aliquo
- (ambiguous) to have a good or bad reputation, be spoken well, ill of: bene, male audire (ab aliquo)
- (ambiguous) to inculcate good (bad) principles: bene (male) praecipere alicui
- (ambiguous) a guilty conscience: animus male sibi conscius
- (ambiguous) a moral (immoral) man: homo bene (male) moratus
- (ambiguous) to bless (curse) a person: precari alicui bene (male) or omnia bona (mala), salutem
- (ambiguous) to manage one's affairs, household, property well or ill: rem bene (male) gerere (vid. sect. XVI. 10a)
- (ambiguous) to buy dearly: magno or male emere
- (ambiguous) to win, lose a fight (of the commander): rem (bene, male) gerere (vid. sect. XII. 2, note rem gerere...)
- (ambiguous) I am sorry to hear..: male (opp. bene) narras (de)
- (ambiguous) to deserve ill of a person; to treat badly: male mereri de aliquo
Remove ads
Limburgish
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Middle Dutch mālen, from Old Dutch *malan, from Proto-West Germanic *malan, from Proto-Germanic *malaną.
Verb
male
- To mill.
Conjugation
Montfortian conjugation of male (first conjugation)
Middle English
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Old French masle, malle, from Late Latin masclus, from Latin masculus; compare femele and masculyn.
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Noun
male (plural males)
- A man; a male human or animal.
- (rare) A "male" gem or plant.
- (rare) Manhood; the state of being male.
Descendants
References
- “māle, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Adjective
male
- male (of masculine sex or gender)
- Used in extended reference to supposedly "male" gems, plants, or astrological portents.
Descendants
References
- “māle, adj.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Etymology 2
Borrowed from Anglo-Norman and continental Old French male, from Frankish *malhu, from Proto-Germanic *malhō.
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Noun
male (plural males)
Descendants
References
- “māl(e, n.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Etymology 3
Borrowed from Latin mālum, from Ancient Greek μῆλον (mêlon), of unknown origin.
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Noun
male
- (chiefly Late Middle English, uncommon) The appletree (Malus domestica) or its fruit.
References
- “māl(e, n.(3).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
Etymology 4
Noun
male
- alternative form of mayle
Etymology 5
Noun
male
- (Northern) alternative form of mel
Middle High German
Pronunciation
Verb
male
Norwegian Bokmål
Etymology 1
From Old Norse mála and Middle Low German malen.
Verb
male (imperative mal, present tense maler, passive males, simple past malte, past participle malt, present participle malende)
- To paint.
See also
- måle (Nynorsk)
Etymology 2
Verb
male (imperative mal, present tense maler, passive males, simple past mol or malte, past participle malt, present participle malende)
- To grind or mill (to make smaller by breaking with a device).
- To purr (of a cat, to make a vibrating sound in its throat when contented)
Derived terms
- den som kommer først til mølla, får først malt (“to mill”)
- hvitmalt (“painted white”)
- male seg inn i et hjørne (“to paint”) (English)
- maleri (“painting”)
- maling (“paint, painting”)
- rødmalt (“painted red”)
- skjønnmale (“to paint”)
- umalt (both senses)
References
- “male” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
Norwegian Nynorsk
Etymology 1
Verb
male (present tense mel, past tense mol, supine male, past participle malen, present participle malande, imperative mal)
- alternative form of mala
Etymology 2
Verb
male (present tense malar, past tense mala, past participle mala, passive infinitive malast, present participle malande, imperative male/mal)
Old English
Pronunciation
Noun
māle
Old French
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Medieval Latin mala, from Frankish *malha (“leather bag”).
Noun
male oblique singular, f (oblique plural males, nominative singular male, nominative plural males)
Descendants
Pali
Alternative forms
Alternative scripts
- 𑀫𑀮𑁂 (Brahmi script)
- मले (Devanagari script)
- মলে (Bengali script)
- මලෙ (Sinhalese script)
- မလေ (Burmese script)
- มเล or มะเล (Thai script)
- ᨾᩃᩮ (Tai Tham script)
- ມເລ or ມະເລ (Lao script)
- មលេ (Khmer script)
- 𑄟𑄣𑄬 (Chakma script)
Noun
male
Polish
Etymology
Pronunciation
Adverb
male (not comparable)
Further reading
- Aleksander Saloni (1908), “male”, in “Lud rzeszowski”, in Materyały Antropologiczno-Archeologiczne i Etnograficzne (in Polish), volume 10, Kraków: Akademia Umiejętności, page 336
Sardinian
Etymology
Adverb
male
Serbo-Croatian
Adjective
male (Cyrillic spelling мале)
- inflection of mal:
Toba Batak
Etymology
From Proto-Batak *ləhey.
Pronunciation
Adjective
male
References
- Warneck, J. (1906). Tobabataksch-Deutsches Wörterbuch. Batavia: Landesdrukkerij, p. 113.
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Remove ads