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

But her sense of purpose wasn’t about proving a point or being a feminist, but something even more straightforward. —Adrienne Lafrance, The Atlantic, 15 Feb. 2025

The observant prankster revealed how any feminists who hail the Academy’s berserk nomination are their own worst enemy. —Armond White, National Review, 5 Feb. 2025

Adjective

Two years ago, the legendary feminist legal scholar Joan Williams was shown the most recent Korean fertility data for a documentary. —Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 24 Feb. 2025

There’s also a sense of how the family’s relative privilege comes into play, not just in Johanne’s upbringing (with access to a country cabin), but also through Karin’s point-of-view as a battle-weary feminist activist, who groaned over Kristin’s love of Flashdance as a kid. —Nicolas Rapold, Deadline, 22 Feb. 2025

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