chick lit

/ˈt͡ʃɪk ˌlɪt/

noun

Literature perceived to appeal to, or be marketed at, young women, typically concerning romantic dilemmas.

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Meanings

nounchick lit (uncountable)

alternative chick-lit · alternative chicklit

  1. derogatoryinformaloftenuncountableLiterature perceived to appeal to, or be marketed at, young women, typically concerning romantic dilemmas.
    1 more example

    Hello, my name is Michele and I'm proud to be a chick-lit author. I write the kind of novel that gets spattered with margarita and suncream rather than soaked in Booker-type praise. You know the books I mean. You need only look for their pastel covers, or follow the trail that leads to one of their many detractors – for they make some women spit with gender-bashing venom.

    2010 August 5, Michele Gorman, “The chick-lit debate: light doesn't have to mean stupid”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

Origin

From the English slang words chick (“girl, woman”) and lit (“literature”).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

chick lit. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chick%20lit

MLA

“chick lit.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chick%20lit. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “chick lit,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/chick%20lit.

Source: chick lit on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.