Meanings
- informaluncountableLiterary fiction which appeals to, or is marketed toward, men, typically written by male authors and centering on male characters.
He sang the praises of Elmore Leonard, Chabon, Malamud and a host of tough-guy “manfiction” novelists, to use his affectionately satirical term.
2007 March 18, Ben Neihart, “Prince of Darkness”, in The New York Times2 more examples
And current manfiction certainly gives women a better deal than they got in the pulps of yesteryear, when most were presented as barracuda debs in frilly negligees.
2008 October 12, Stephen King, “Who Says Real Men Don't Read?”, in Entertainment WeeklyA professed affinity for Manfiction was a central tenet of this precarious Cool Girl identity; a Cool Girl was always ready to support the literary analysis presented by the dudes, even after consuming a fifth of bourbon at three in the morning.
2010, Amanda Hess (quoting Tiger Beatdown), "The Morning After: Manfiction and Mandles Edition", Washington City Paper, 1 June 2010Synonyms: dick lit
Synonyms & antonyms
nounLiterary fiction which appeals to, or is marketed toward, men, typically written by male authors and centering on male characters.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*mon-
- Proto-Germanic*mann-
- Proto-West Germanic*mann
- Old Englishmann
- Middle Englishman
- Englishman
- Proto-Indo-European*dʰeyǵʰ-
- Proto-Indo-European*dʰinéǵʰti
- Proto-Italic*θingō
- Proto-Italic*fingō
- Latinfingō
- Latinfictiō
- Old Frenchficcion
- Middle Englishficcioun
- Englishfiction
- Englishmanfiction
Cite this entry
manfiction. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manfiction
“manfiction.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manfiction. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “manfiction,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manfiction.
Source: manfiction on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.