Meanings
noun
- human sciencesThe implicit assumption or presentation of the viewpoint of a heterosexual man in films and other visual media, often manifesting in lingering, eroticized shots of women's bodies.
Origin
Coined by John Berger in the 1972 BBC documentary Ways of Seeing, and popularized by Laura Mulvey in "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema", published in 1975.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic نَظْرَة ذُكُورِيَّة
- نَظْرَة ذُكُورِيَّةviewpoint of a heterosexual man
Chinese Mandarin 男凝, 男性凝視 /男性凝视
- 男凝 (nánníng)viewpoint of a heterosexual man
- 男性凝視 /男性凝视 (nánxìng níngshì)viewpoint of a heterosexual man
Finnish miehinen katse
- miehinen katseviewpoint of a heterosexual man
French regard masculin
- regard masculinviewpoint of a heterosexual man
Polish male gaze
- male gazeviewpoint of a heterosexual man
Spanish mirada masculina
- mirada masculinaviewpoint of a heterosexual man
Swedish manliga blicken
- manliga blickenviewpoint of a heterosexual man
Cite this entry
APA
male gaze. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/male%20gaze
MLA
“male gaze.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/male%20gaze. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “male gaze,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/male%20gaze.
Source: male gaze on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.