girl

Meaning

Noun

1. A young female human, or sometimes a young female animal.
2. A woman, especially a young and often attractive woman.
3. A female servant; a maid. (see usage notes)
4. (slang) A queen (the playing card).
5. (colloquial) A term of endearment. (see usage notes)
6. One's girlfriend.
7. One's daughter.
8. (obsolete) A roebuck two years old.
9. (slang) Cocaine, especially in powder form.
10. A female non-human animal, especially, in affectionate address, a female pet, especially a dog.
11. A female (tree, gene, etc).
12. (informal) A machine or vehicle, especially one that the speaker uses often and is fond of.

Verb

1. To feminize or girlify; to gender as a girl or as for girls.
2. (informal) To staff with or as a girl or girls.

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ɡɜːɫ/

Etymology

From Middle English gerle, girle, gyrle (“young person (boy or girl)”), perhaps from Old English *gyrele, from Proto-West Germanic *gurilā, from a zero-grade diminutive of *gaurā (“young child”) + *-ilā. Ultimately of unknown origin. Doublet of gal/gyal and gyaru.

Sentences

" How did you learn to read ?" the girl asked at one point .