virility
Americannoun
-
the state or quality of being virile; manly character, vigor, or spirit; masculinity.
-
the power of procreation.
Other Word Forms
- nonvirility noun
- ultravirility noun
Etymology
Origin of virility
1580–90; < Latin virīlitās, equivalent to virīli ( s ) virile + -tās -ty 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
What McCarthy discovers is that in a society obsessed with male bravado, one that far too often values virility above vulnerability, it’s the knocking down of emotional walls that enables male friendships to thrive.
From Los Angeles Times
Still, experts say the Grinch’s 2025 glow-up likely owes as much to holiday exhaustion and broad consumer pessimism as it does vertical video virility.
From Los Angeles Times
Mr. Strong’s Oedipus is a commanding figure, exuding virility and seeming to tower over everyone around him, a pillar of rectitude and confidence.
But it’s also part of Netflix’s “rise and fall” true crime genre, cautioning against believing in figures like Johnson, who hooks young men by flogging a version of caveman masculinity that associates virility with dominance.
From Salon
Chocolate, which was once a symbol of power and virility, took on more feminine connotations once women could enjoy it.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
