male

male — adjective

1. belonging to or connected with men or boys rather than women or girls; having qu

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

belonging to or connected with men or boys rather than women or girls; having qualities that people often consider typical of men.

Example

The male students at Christopher's school wear white shirts and blue trousers.

attributive use: male + noun (students)

Andrés thinks that showing emotion is not considered male behavior in his culture.

Common collocations
  • male colleague
  • male nurse
  • male student
  • male population
  • male-dominated
Synonyms
  • masculine

    focuses on traits and qualities culturally associated with men, not just biological sex

  • manly

    suggests strength and courage as positive male qualities; slightly old-fashioned

Antonyms
  • female

    the opposite sex category

  • feminine

    associated with traits culturally linked to women

Usage Note

Often used before a noun to specify the gender of a person (male student, male colleague). In this attributive position, male does not carry strong overtones of stereotyped masculinity — it simply states a fact about sex. Compare masculine, which emphasizes culturally expected traits.

Common Mistakes

He is a very male man.
He is very masculine.
'male' is not typically used with 'very' to describe a person's character; use 'masculine' or 'manly' instead.

2. of the sex that makes tiny cells (sperm) which can join with a female egg to cre

2.adjectiveA2
Definition

of the sex that makes tiny cells (sperm) which can join with a female egg to create offspring, instead of carrying eggs or giving birth.

Example

The male peacock spreads its colorful feathers to attract a mate.

animal sex distinction: male + species name

In most bird species, the male is more brightly colored than the female.

Common collocations
  • male animal
  • male offspring
  • male specimen
  • male reproductive system
Antonyms
  • female

    the opposite biological sex

Usage Note

This sense is the standard biological usage across both animals and humans. When used for humans, it can sound clinical or formal — in everyday conversation, 'male' as a noun may feel more technical than 'man' or 'boy'.

3. describing a plant or flower that produces pollen instead of seeds; having stame

3.adjectiveB2
Definition

describing a plant or flower that produces pollen instead of seeds; having stamens but not a pistil.

Example

The gardener identified the male flowers by their long stamens covered in yellow pollen.

botanical structure: male flower + stamens + pollen

Some kiwi plants require both male and female vines growing close together to produce fruit.

Common collocations
  • male flower
  • male plant
  • male vine
  • male catkin
Synonyms
  • staminate

    the technical botanical term; very formal and rare outside science

Antonyms
  • female

    in plants, the flower that produces seeds or fruit

Usage Note

Distinguish from adj/2: this sense applies only to plants (flowers, trees, vines). The plant equivalent of 'male' does not involve sperm or fertilization in the animal sense — it simply produces pollen that reaches female flower parts.

4. describing a hardware component or fitting with a protruding section that insert

4.adjectiveB2
Definition

describing a hardware component or fitting with a protruding section that inserts into a matching recessed section (called the female part).

Example

The male end of the USB cable plugs into the computer port on the side.

collocation: male end / male connector

Push the male connector into the socket until it clicks into place.

Common collocations
  • male end
  • male connector
  • male plug
  • male thread
  • male fitting
Antonyms
  • female

    the corresponding hollow or recessed part that receives the male connector

Usage Note

Used primarily in electronics (cables, plugs, ports) and hardware (pipes, screws, fittings). The terms 'male' and 'female' describe how two parts physically connect. Distinguish from other senses — this is purely technical and has nothing to do with gender.

male — noun

male — idiom

Word family

  • maleness
    nounC1
  • masculine
    adjectiveB2
  • masculinity
    nounB2
  • macho
    adjectiveC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

These four words all relate to men, but they differ in how they are used. Male is a neutral, factual term that describes biological sex — a 'male nurse' is simply a nurse who is a man. Masculine refers to qualities or traits that a culture expects of men, such as strength or independence: 'She has a very masculine style of dressing.' Manly also describes positive male traits like bravery and honesty, but sounds slightly old-fashioned: 'He performed a manly act of courage.' Macho is more informal and often critical, suggesting an exaggerated or aggressive display of masculinity: 'His macho attitude made it hard for him to ask for help.' In everyday use, male works for factual statements, masculine for traits, manly for old-fashioned praise, and macho for negative criticism.

male ↗masculinemanlymacho

Common collocations

Nouns

  • male peer
  • male partner
  • male relative
  • male heir
  • male lineage

Adverbs

  • predominantly male
  • exclusively male
  • typically male
  • traditionally male
  • overwhelmingly male

Phrases

  • male-dominated field
  • male-to-female ratio
  • male pattern baldness

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

The word 'male' comes from Latin 'masculus', meaning 'male, masculine' — a smaller form of 'mas' (a male person). It passed into Old French as 'masle' (modern French 'mâle') and entered English around the 1300s. The original Latin root may be related to an even older Indo-European word meaning 'to grow' or 'to be strong'.