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girl

female child / young woman / female friend

/ɡɵːl/

[C] Countable
pl: girls

The primary image is one of youth and femininity. While it denotes a female child, its application to adult women varies wildly depending on the social context. When used for adults in a professional or formal setting, it can be perceived as patronizing or belittling, as it strips away the status associated with 'woman'. In informal, peer-to-peer contexts (e.g., "the girls"), it conveys intimacy, solidarity, and shared friendship, often stripping the word of its age-related meaning to focus on social bonding.

💬Casual Conversation

🎬Tuesday afternoon, Ryan is gaming while Leo is in the other room.
Leo

Chloe's tweaking because you forgot her birthday. That girl is actually losing it.

Leo
Ryan
Ryan

damn that's crazy. i thought it was next week.

💡
Leo uses the slang 'tweaking' (acting irrational or overreacting) to describe his sister's anger. He refers to her as 'that girl' to create a cynical distance, highlighting their sibling rivalry and his personality. Ryan's response is classic obliviousness, using the phrase 'damn that's crazy' to dismiss a serious situation.

Meanings

Nounfemale child

A female child or adolescent.

"The little girl played with her dolls in the garden."

Nounyoung woman

A young woman.

"She is a bright girl with a promising future in science."

Nounfemale friend

A female friend or companion (informal).

"I'm going out for drinks with the girls tonight."

Collocations & Compounds

little girl

A female child of young age.

school girl

A girl who attends school.

girl power

The concept of female empowerment and strength.

golden girl

A woman who is exceptionally successful or admired.

it's a girl

An announcement that a newborn baby is female.

Idioms & Sayings

girl Friday

A female assistant who is efficient and handles a wide variety of tasks.

golden girl

A woman who is exceptionally successful, admired, or favored.

it's a girl!

An exclamation used to announce the birth of a female child.

Etymology

Derived from Middle English 'gyrle', which originally referred to a child of either sex. It is likely related to the Old English 'girnan' (to weep or whine) or potentially influenced by Old Norse roots, eventually narrowing in meaning to refer specifically to females by the mid-14th century.

Related Words

Last Updated: June 8, 2026Report an Error