male
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male¹
- /meɪl/ UK, US
- /meːl/ South Asia
Sounds like mail
Where it comes from
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”).
adjective maler · more male · malest · most male
- Belonging to the sex which typically produces sperm, or to the gender which is typically associated with it. male writers
- Characteristic of this sex/gender. (Compare masculine, manly.) stereotypically male interests
- Tending to lead to or regulate the development of sexual characteristics typical of this sex. the male chromosome
- Masculine; of the masculine grammatical gender 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.
- Having the F factor; able to impart DNA into another bacterium which does not have the F factor (a female). 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[…]
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Of instruments, tools, or connectors: designed to fit into or penetrate a female counterpart, as in a connector, pipe fitting or laboratory glassware.
Male adapter connects female pipe threads to polyethylene cold-water pipe; [...] female flare coupling connects male pipe threads to flared copper or plastic;
Similar: plug
noun males
- 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 bacterium which has the F factor. 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[…]
- A male connector, pipe fitting, etc. 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.
Opposite: female
Male²
Where it comes from
* As a Welsh surname, from the personal name Mael, from Middle Welsh mael (“prince”).
* As an English surname of Norman origin, contaminated from many Old French sources, such as mail (“hammer”), maille (“chainmail”), maille (“denier”), or esmal (“enamel”). Compare Mailer.
* Also as an English surname, from Middle English male (“bag, pouch”).
* Also as an English surname of Norman origin, from the source of male (“male, male adult”).
* Also as an English surname, from Middle English mele (“meal, flour”) (compare Millman) or from Old Norse melr (“sandhill”). Compare Meil.
* As a Slovene surname, from the adjective mal (“small, little”), from Proto-Slavic *malъ. Compare Mal, Mahle.
* As a Norwegian surname, from a farm in Romsdal derived from Old Norse mǫl (“layer of pebbles”). Also Americanized from Mæle, Mæhle, itself related to the Norse word melr.
Compare Mele.
proper noun
- A surname.
Male³
noun
- Alternative form of Maale
proper noun
- Alternative form of Maale
Male⁴
proper noun
- A Madang language of Papua New Guinea.
MALE⁵
Where it comes from
Abbreviation
adjective
- Acronym of medium-altitude long-endurance
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: masculine, manlike, virile, manful, manly, phallic, priapic, antheral, staminate, male person, young-begetting, female, masculinity, macho, man, butch
noun
Opposite: female
Translations
Every language
adj belonging to the sex which typically produces sperm, or the gender typically associated with it
| Español | masculino, macho |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 남성 namseong, 웅 ung |
| 日本語 | 雄 yū, 男性 dansei |
| 中文 | 男 nán, 公 gōng, 雄 xióng |
| हिन्दी | नर nar |
| Português | macho, masculino, másculo |
| Français | mâle, masculin |
| Deutsch | männlich |
| Italiano | maschile, maschio |
| Ελληνικά | αρσενικός arsenikós |
| Română | mascul, masculin |
| Русский | мужско́й mužskój |
| Tiếng Việt | trai, nam, trống, đực |
| العربية | ذَكَرِيّ ḏakariyy |
adj having an external plug
| Español | macho |
|---|---|
| Português | masculino, macho |
| Français | mâle |
| Italiano | maschio |
| Ελληνικά | αρσενικός arsenikós |
| Русский | па́па pápa |
noun human of masculine sex or gender
| Español | varón, macho, hombre |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 남성 namseong |
| 日本語 | 男性 dansei |
| 中文 | 男性 nánxìng |
| हिन्दी | नर nar |
| Português | homem, macho |
| Français | homme |
| Deutsch | Mann |
| Italiano | maschio |
| Ελληνικά | αρσενικός arsenikós, άρρενας árrenas |
| Română | bărbat, mascul |
| Русский | мужчи́на mužčína |
| Tiếng Việt | đàn ông |
| العربية | ذَكَر ḏakar, رَجُل rajul |
| עברית | זכר \ זָכָר zakhár |
noun animal of masculine sex
| Español | macho |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 수컷 sukeot |
| 日本語 | 雄 osu, 牡 osu |
| 中文 | 雄 xióng |
| हिन्दी | नर nar |
| Português | macho |
| Français | mâle |
| Deutsch | Männchen, Er |
| Italiano | maschio |
| Ελληνικά | αρσενικός arsenikós |
| Română | bărbătuș |
| Русский | саме́ц saméc |
| Tiếng Việt | đực |
| العربية | ذَكَر ḏakar |
| עברית | זכר \ זָכָר zakhár |
noun plant of masculine sex
| Português | planta-pai |
|---|---|
| Ελληνικά | αρσενικός arsenikós |
| العربية | ذَكَر ḏakar |
| עברית | זכר \ זָכָר zakhár |
Talk about this word "male." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/male. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. male. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/male "male." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/male.Cite this
@misc{male_2026,
title = {male},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/male},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
