- effeminate (adj.)
- late 14c., "womanish; voluptuous; tender," from Latin effeminatus "womanish, effeminate," past participle of effeminare "make a woman of," from ex- "out" (see ex-) + femina "woman" (see feminine). Rarely used but in reproach. The noun meaning "effeminate person" is from 1590s. Related: Effeminately; effemination.
