feminism

[ fem-uh-niz-uhm ]

noun

1. the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men.
2. (sometimes initial capital letter) an organized movement for the attainment of such rights for women.
3. Older Use. feminine character.

feminism

/ ˈfɛmɪˌnɪzəm /

noun

1. a doctrine or movement that advocates equal rights for women

feminism

¹

1. The doctrine — and the political movement based on it — that women should have the same economic, social, and political rights as men. ( See under “Anthropology, Psychology, and Sociology.” )

feminism

²

1. A movement for granting women political, social, and economic equality with men. ( See women's movement .)

Other Words From

• femi·nist noun adjective
• anti·femi·nism noun
• pro·femi·nism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of feminism¹

First recorded in 1840–45; from Latin fēmina “woman” + -ism ( def ); 1890–95 for sense of “women's movement” (from feminist ( def ), adjective); feminine ( def )

Example Sentences

Journalist Koa Beck—a veteran of Jezebel, Vogue, and Marie Claire—examines, with clear-eyed scrutiny and in meticulous detail, the history of feminism, from the true mission of the suffragettes to the rise of corporate feminism.

From Fortune

It’s a very, very difficult territory to walk, to build a unicorn-scale business based on feminism.

From Fortune

She has published a how-to handbook for activists, Heroines of the Streets, that she hopes will offer tools to other women advocating for radical feminism.

From Ozy

It acknowledges the rich, complicated history of the women’s suffrage movement and forges a new pathway for inclusive feminism.

From Outside Online

Sweden’s brand of feminism had spent a decade working to create a more balanced society, both for women in the workplace and for men in the home.

From Ozy

Here she is in June saying “Trans politics and feminism have never been headed to the same place.”

From The Daily Beast

As my fellow students have eloquently demonstrated, we need feminism.

From The Daily Beast

Unwittingly or not, modern feminism is leaving its disabled sisters out of the discussion.

From The Daily Beast

“Mainstream feminism is riddled with classism, racism, and sexual orientation discrimination,” she wrote.

From The Daily Beast

Lepore has a different, though still linear, metaphor for the history of feminism: “a river, wending.”

From The Daily Beast

None were about the party, but on subjects like 35 "political economy," "the fur trade," "feminism."

From Project Gutenberg

Only after serious study of sexual dimorphism in the animal series may one venture a few reflections on feminism.

From Project Gutenberg

For if there are in nature numerous examples of feminism, there are very few of an equality of the sexes.

From Project Gutenberg

It appears that public opinion in New England was disagreeably impressed by this early manifestation of feminism.

From Project Gutenberg

For feminism, in a sense, is a return to atavism, and sex antagonism and sex attraction are functions of the same thing.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• feminist movement

More About Feminism

What does feminism mean?

Feminism is a doctrine, or principle, that states women should have rights equal to those of men, especially social and political rights.

Because feminism is a doctrine, there are many different thoughts about what feminism actually means and how best to achieve the desired equality. There is no unified group of feminists with a single philosophy, but all feminists agree that women are somehow not treated equally to men and that they should be.

In the United States, from around 1848 through to 1920, feminism was generally concerned with women’s right to vote (known as women’s suffrage), notably starting at the Seneca Falls Convention.

From around 1960, feminism began to be concerned with women’s civil rights and questioned what women’s role in society should be. Scholars are divided on whether the second wave actually ended and, if so, when.

Starting in the 1990s, feminism started emphasizing electing women to political offices and majorly fighting against sexual harassment in the workplace. Many feminists at the time also questioned the notion of gender and the stereotypes of male and female societal roles and behavior.

Some scholars suggest in the early 2010s, feminists began to focus on furthering better treatment of women. This can be seen by the rapid spread of the Me Too movement.

Why is feminism important?

The first records of the word feminism come from around 1840. It is made from the Latin fēmina, meaning “woman,” and the suffix -ism, which denotes a principle or doctrine.

But women argued for equality to men much earlier than 1840. Feminism writings have been recorded as early as the 1300s and even ancient Roman women sometimes gathered to oppose discriminatory laws.

Feminism is not a monolithic movement in which all feminists share a single belief system. Even the first wave of feminism had groups with different beliefs and goals. Additionally, both the first and second waves had divisions based on class and race, and the second wave had divisions on nationality.

Even today, there are many different ideas about what feminism is and what its goals should be.

Did you know ... ?

Susan B. Anthony was a major leader of the women’s suffrage movement, and she founded the National Woman Suffrage Association with Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Anthony was the first woman to have her likeness honored on American coins thanks to a 1978 law that bears her name, the Susan B. Anthony Dollar Coin Act.

What are real-life examples of feminism?

Feminism takes many forms and can be addressed from many different perspectives.

resources on asian american feminism & solidarity: @aafcollective resource guide with
– zines on care in the time of covid-19, building an asian american movement, asian american feminist history
– reading list
– black and asian feminist solidarity https://t.co/YDdhj2PyEt pic.twitter.com/7tSFFfOfEV

— Julie Ae Kim (@julieaekim) March 18, 2021

Feminism is still widely held today, and there are still people who fight against it.

Don't forget the first wave of feminism: tomorrow is International Women's Day.

— ladina (@so_dina) March 7, 2011

In my view, feminism isn’t about:
-wearing makeup or going natural
-dressing modestly or provocatively
-working full-time or staying home with kids

It’s about having the right to make each of these (and other) decisions for yourself without being judged by others.

— Jen Heemstra (@jenheemstra) August 18, 2020

What other words are related to feminism?

• women
• feminist
• women’s rights
• suffrage
• sexism
• patriarchy

Quiz yourself!

True or False?

Feminism is the belief that women should have rights equal to men’s rights.