Meanings
plural manfulnesses
- uncountableusuallyThe state of being manful
He only sees his own weakness, and want of life, of spirit, of manfulness, of power.
1881, Charles Kingsley, Westminster Sermons2 more examples
He will at least have the manfulness to depart out of it, if not; to say: "I cannot move in thee, and be a man; like a wretched drift-log dressed in man's clothes and minister's clothes, doomed to a lot baser than belongs to man, I will not continue with thee, tumbling aimless on the Mother of Dead Dogs here:--Adieu!"
1881, Thomas Carlyle, Past and PresentNor were these sentiments, be it remembered, the mere boasting manifesto of a hot-brained inexperienced youth, entering on literature with feelings of heroic ardour, which its difficulties and temptations would soon deaden or pervert: they are the calm principles of a man, expressed with honest manfulness, at a period when the world could compare them with a long course of conduct.
1825, Thomas Carlyle, The Life of Friedrich Schiller
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe trait of being manly; having the characteristics of an adult male
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Middle Englishmanfulnesse
- Englishmanfulness
From Middle English manfulnesse; equivalent to manful + -ness.
More words from Middle English
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
manfulness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manfulness
“manfulness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manfulness. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “manfulness,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/manfulness.
Source: manfulness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.