as in masculine
having qualities or traits that are traditionally considered inappropriate for a girl or woman
a designer whose eclectic spring line paired hoydenish work boots with frilly skirts
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hoydenish
Adjective
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Poitier slapped white men onscreen and fell defiantly in love with their daughters, illustrating how his kind of masculine dignity had to be won in a series of direct clashes with white power.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
2 Aug. 2025 -
Chaz was blending fragrance with her own sense of irreverence: inspired by cologne, her love of masculine notes, and a desire to make scent feel more personal and less precious.—
Karin Eldor,
Forbes.com,
31 July 2025
Adjective
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The new girl’s unladylike bravado ensures that she will be asked to board with the Brown girl.—
Chris Bohjalian,
Washington Post,
17 Aug. 2023
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In fact, one of the choicest bites of the entire meal was an unladylike gnaw of the generous gristle on a bone followed by a spoonful of marrow-thickened soup, bobbing with cubes of cleansing daikon.—
Jiayang Fan,
The New Yorker,
2 Sep. 2022
Adjective
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Dior’s collection referenced the H-line created by its founder Christian Dior for Fall-Winter 1954-1955 – a controversial silhouette at the time as its flattened shape appeared, for some, unfeminine.—
Alice Pfeiffer,
CNN,
28 Jan. 2025
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The intention behind this final postcard may have been, yet again, to paint the fight for suffrage as absurd, to make suffragists seem like willful, unfeminine animals.—
Natalie Kinkade,
JSTOR Daily,
25 Sep. 2024
Adjective
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In the 2024 general election, 63% of Black women congressional nominees won their contests, outpacing the win rates of all female candidates at 49% and male candidates at 53% across race/ethnicity, according to the report.—
Deborah Barfield Berry,
USA Today,
31 July 2025
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Commentators were quick to criticize the campaign for appealing to the male gaze.—
Kian Bakhtiari,
Forbes.com,
31 July 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Hoydenish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoydenish. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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