Meanings
plural sapphisms · alternative Sapphism · alternative obsolete Saphism
- uncountableusuallyFemale homosexuality; lesbianism.First known use 18th c.
Its odd that yᵉ Roman Women did not borrow that horrible Vice from Greece—it has a Greek name now & is called Sapphism, but I never did hear of it in Italy where the Ladies are today exactly what Juvenal described them in his Time—neither better nor worse as I can find.
1795 December 9, Hester Lynch Piozzi, ThralianaSynonyms: lesbianism
Synonyms & antonyms
nounFemale homosexuality; lesbianism.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Ancient GreekΣαπφώ (Sapphṓ)
- LatinSapphō
- EnglishSappho
- Englishsapphism
From Sappho + -ism, referring to ancient Greek poet Sappho of Lesbos (c. 612 BCE – c. 570 BCE).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian лесбийство
- лесбийство (lesbijstvo)lesbianism
Dutch sapfisme
- sapfismelesbianism
French sapphisme, saphisme
- sapphismelesbianism
- saphismelesbianism
German Sapphismus
- Sapphismuslesbianism
Indonesian safisme
- safismelesbianism
Italian saffismo
- saffismolesbianism
Japanese サッフィズム
- サッフィズム (saffizumu)lesbianism
Norwegian Bokmål saffisme, sapfisme
- saffismelesbianism
- sapfismelesbianism
Polish safizm
- safizmlesbianism
Portuguese safismo
- safismolesbianism
Spanish safismo
- safismolesbianism
Cite this entry
sapphism. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sapphism
“sapphism.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sapphism. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sapphism,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sapphism.
Source: sapphism on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.