girlfriend

girlfriend — noun

1. a female romantic partner that someone is steadily dating and shares a loving re

1.nounA2
Definition

a female romantic partner that someone is steadily dating and shares a loving relationship with

Example

Lukas brought his girlfriend Sana to meet his parents last weekend.

[possessive determiner] + girlfriend + [name]

Yan has been dating his girlfriend Amani for over two years now.

have been dating [possessive] girlfriend + [time period]

Common collocations
  • have a girlfriend
  • get a girlfriend
  • find a girlfriend
  • introduce one's girlfriend
  • live with one's girlfriend
  • break up with one's girlfriend
  • dump one's girlfriend
Synonyms
  • partner

    more formal and gender-neutral; can refer to any long-term romantic companion

  • lover

    more intimate, emphasizing the physical or sexual side of the relationship

  • significant other

    formal and polite, often used on official forms or in careful social contexts

  • date

    refers to a person you are seeing casually, usually before the relationship becomes serious or exclusive

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

[possessive determiner] + girlfriend

[possessive determiner] + girlfriend + [name]

Common Mistakes

She introduced me to her girlfriend' (without context, said by a woman).
She introduced me to her partner' or 'She introduced me to her girlfriend, Mei.
when a woman says 'my girlfriend' to mean a romantic partner, listeners may think she means a platonic female friend (sense 2). Adding the person's name or context about the relationship avoids confusion.

2. a female friend that a woman has, with no romantic involvement between them — th

2.nounB1
Definition

a female friend that a woman has, with no romantic involvement between them — this older meaning has become less common because people now use 'girlfriend' mostly for the romantic partner sense

Example

Dewi went shopping with her girlfriends from college last Saturday.

often plural: girlfriends

Sivan met her old girlfriend from high school for lunch.

Common collocations
  • meet one's girlfriends
  • go out with one's girlfriends
  • a girls' night out with one's girlfriends
  • old girlfriend (meaning close female friend from the past)
Synonyms
  • female friend

    neutral and completely unambiguous

  • pal

    informal and friendly, but gender-neutral

  • buddy

    casual, can be used for male and female friends

Grammar Patterns

[possessive determiner] + girlfriends (plural)

[possessive determiner] + old girlfriend

Usage Note

This sense was common in the mid-20th century but is now less frequent because it can be confused with sense 1 ('ROMANTIC PARTNER'). When women want to avoid ambiguity, they often use 'female friend' or simply 'friend' instead. The plural 'girlfriends' is still widely used to mean a group of female friends without romantic meaning.

Common Mistakes

I am going out with my girlfriend tonight' (said by a woman, meaning a platonic friend).
I am going out with my female friend tonight' or 'I am going out with my friends tonight.
without context, most English speakers now assume 'girlfriend' means a romantic partner.

3. a friendly and informal term that one woman uses to address another woman direct

3.nounB1
Definition

a friendly and informal term that one woman uses to address another woman directly — similar to saying 'dear' or 'sister' in English

Example

Listen, girlfriend, you have to tell him how you really feel.

used as a direct address (vocative)

Hey girlfriend, it has been way too long since we last talked.

Synonyms
  • girl

    informal, used the same way to address a female friend directly

  • hon

    short for 'honey', used as a friendly address between women

Grammar Patterns

used as a vocative at the beginning or end of a sentence

Usage Note

Only used by women when speaking to other women in casual conversation. It conveys warmth, familiarity, and solidarity. Equivalent to terms like 'honey,' 'dear,' or 'girl' in informal American English. This sense is most common in African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and in friendly Southern US speech.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Girlfriend' is the most common everyday word for a woman you are romantically involved with. 'Partner' is more formal and gender-neutral — it can refer to any long-term romantic companion regardless of gender. 'Lover' puts more emphasis on the physical or sexual side of the relationship and sounds more dramatic. 'Significant other' is a polite, formal term used on official forms, invitations, or when keeping the relationship vague on purpose. 'Date' means someone you are seeing casually, before the relationship becomes serious or exclusive. For example, you might call someone 'my girlfriend' after a few months of steady dating, but 'my date' after the first meeting. A couple who has lived together for years is more likely to say 'partner' to reflect a serious, long-term commitment.

girlfriend ↗partner ↗lover ↗significant otherdate ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • ex-girlfriend
  • someone's girlfriend

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

Formed by combining the Old English words 'gyrel' (young person) and 'frēond' (friend). First recorded in English around the mid-1800s, where 'girlfriend' originally meant simply a female friend (without romantic meaning). By the early 1900s, the romantic partner sense had become common, and over the 20th century it replaced the platonic meaning as the primary use of the word.