feminist

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noun

fem·​i·​nist ˈfe-mə-nist 

plural feminists

: a person who supports or engages in feminism

Similarly, Saint Thomas's resident nun, Sister Maureen (Ann Dowd), is no girlish cutie: She's an ardent, in-your-face feminist.

—Terrence Rafferty

He [Stendhal] was a feminist and … he held that to deprive women of education 'deprives society of half its potential for intellectual achievement'.

—V. S. Pritchett

feminist

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adjective

: of, relating to, supporting, or compatible with feminism

feminist theory

the feminist movement

The act of speaking is a way women come to power, telling our stories, sharing history, engaging in feminist discussion.

—bell hooks

[Patricia] Ireland, past president of the National Organization for Women, is perhaps the best-known former Pan Am flight attendant of the '60s; seven years working for the airline helped inspire her feminist activism, which included campaigning for the Equal Rights Amendment.

—Sarah Rose

Examples of feminist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

In the club lounge, Wendy, our resident feminist, accosted me with today’s deal. —Frank Stewart, The Mercury News, 3 Nov. 2024

Republican feminists felt power slipping away as Ronald Reagan mounted a challenge for the Republican nomination in 1976. —Elizabeth Rees / Made By History, TIME, 1 Nov. 2024

Adjective

By looking at her midcareer repertoire, Yale’s new course will explore scholarly works and cultural texts across Black feminist theory, philosophy and anthropology, as well as art history, performance studies and musicology, the course description states. —Angela Yang, NBC News, 10 Nov. 2024

Fonda and Tomlin took that moment to condemn then-President Trump in the name of their feminist film. —Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1887, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1852, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing feminist

• anti-feminist
• pre-feminist
• trans exclusionary radical feminist