manhood

plural manhoods · alternative manhead

1. countableuncountableThe state or condition of being a human being.

   He feared the speedy decline of all manhood.

   1 more example

   Thou seemest human and divine, ⁠The highest, holiest manhood, thou.

   1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Prologue”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC

   Synonyms: humanity

2. countableuncountableThe state or condition of being a man, as contrasted with being a boy, woman, girl, or nonbinary.

   He was a strapping youth poised on the brink of manhood.

   2 more examples

   Feel awfully about Scott... It was a terrible thing for him to love youth so much that he jumped straight from youth to senility without going through manhood. The minute he felt youth going he was frightened again and thought there was nothing between youth and age.

   1936 Feb. 15, Ernest Hemingway, letter to Maxwell Perkins

   The Caves of Ajanta, the medieval Courts of Love, the epithalamia of the erotic poets [...] all testify to the glorification of manhood, the supremacy of the sex motif.

   1961, Harry E. Wedeck, Dictionary of Aphrodisiacs, New York: The Citadel Press, page iii

3. countableuncountableAll of the men of a given place, area, or any human subgroup (ethnicity, nation, race, religion, family, work crew or ship's crew, etc.) regarded collectively.

   During the Second World War, Russia lost a great percentage of its young manhood, giving rise to a great wave of widowhood in the country.

   5 more examples

   (exclusively and universally: only synonymous in cases for which women are excluded, and when the meaning of manhood is universal or worldwide)

   […] it was not until the year 1870, after the republic had been completely drained of its manhood and resources, that the long war was terminated by the capture and death of Lopez […]

   1908, L. Brent Vaughan (Editor), The New Standard History of the World Volume 2, page 809

   But he thanked them all the same for the good example they had shown the county and the country, that in time of trouble, in time of difficulty, and in time of doubt, the manhood of this district and of the surrounding district, and the manhood of Clan Desmond should show their faith in the old grand ideals of a free and united Ireland (cheers).

   1914, D.J. Griffin, Hon. Sec. Castleisland, Kerry, Ireland, Article from the Newspaper "Ireland", Wednesday, November 11, 1914 Title: "Kerry Staunch and True, Great Meeting in Castleisland"

   But nosin’ down the roadway past the bones of other wrecks / Goes the doughty little gunboat with her manhood on her decks!

   1916, Dana Burnet (American Poet), Excerpt from the poem: "The Gunboat"

   The greatest product of any country is her manhood. What if she can boast of coffers bursting with gold, when she raises men with earthen hearts?

   1923, Douglas Wood Miller, Practical Exercises in News Writing and Editing, page 112

   Synonyms: mankind · Antonyms: womanhood, womankind

4. countableuncountableThe idealized nature of a man: all of the characteristics traditionally and ideally ascribed to manliness regarded collectively.

   My goodness, James certainly is a prime example of manhood, isn't he?

   2 more examples

   Traditionally, men sought to enhance the manhood of their young sons, so that they would become manly men, but in general, men no longer do so.

   "And as their valour, so you trow, defied on aspe'rous voyage cruel harm and sore, so many changing skies their manhood tried, such climes where storm-winds blow and billows roar[.]"

   1880, Richard Francis Burton, Os Lusíadas, volume I, page 23

   Synonyms: manfulness, manliness, mannishness · Antonyms: womanhood, womanishness, womanliness

5. countableuncountableThe self-concept of a man being with respect to his possession of the various qualities traditionally and ideally ascribed to manliness; a man's sense or view of himself as being more or less manly.

   I feel that when you boss me around, you insult my manhood.

   2 more examples

   The failure of William's business seems to have been quite damaging to his manhood.

   It was a racking experience, and he did not repeat it. The muscular cramps which are characteristic of the complaint were tying the sufferer into knots, and he was biting his lips to shut down the screams which might have relieved his agony at the expense of his manhood.

   1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019

   Antonyms: womanhood

6. countableeuphemisticuncountableThe male genitalia, especially the penis.

   She spied on him in the shower and glimpsed his manhood.

   3 more examples

   In the course of a journey the Rabbis [...] came across a young man who had been robbed of his manhood and made a eunuch by a certain witch.

   1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 50

   A Thai man was taken to hospital to have a sex toy removed with bolt cutters after it got stuck on his penis. He was using the device at home but was left in agony when he could not detach it from his manhood.

   2016, Rory Tingle, “Thai man has a sex ring removed with bolt cutters after it became stuck on his penis”, in Daily Mail, Associated Newspapers

   Awkward or repetitive prose presented another pitfall. Left to their own devices, chatbots will default to odd or euphemistic phrasing, Ms. Hart said, noting that an A.I. program had recently written “his turgid manhood” to describe a character’s erection.

   2026 February 8, Alexandra Alter, “The New Fabio Is Claude”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

   Antonyms: womanhood