- a female child from birth to young womanhood
- a young unmarried woman; lass; maid
- informal a sweetheart or girlfriend
- informal a woman of any age
- an informal word for daughter
- a female employee, esp a female servant
- South African derogatory a Black female servant of any age
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
girl /gɜrl/USA pronunciation
n. [countable]
girl•ish, adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- a female child, from birth to full growth.
- Sex and Gendera young, immature woman, esp., formerly, an unmarried one:All the girls of the village came out to see the stranger.
- a daughter:My wife and I have two girls.
- [Often Offensive.]a grown woman:Who's the girl waiting on our table?
- Sex and Gendergirlfriend;
sweetheart:had a girl in every port. - Sex and Gender[Often Offensive.]
- a female servant.
- a female employee:I'll have my girl call your office.
girl•ish, adj.
girl
(gûrl),USA pronunciation n.
- a female child, from birth to full growth.
- Sex and Gendera young, immature woman, esp. formerly, an unmarried one.
- a daughter:My wife and I have two girls.
- [Informal](sometimes offensive). a grown woman, esp. when referred to familiarly:She's having the girls over for bridge next week.
- Sex and Gendergirlfriend;
sweetheart. - Sex and Gender[Often Offensive.]a female servant.
- Sex and Gender[Usually Offensive.]a female employee.
- Sex and Gendera female who is from or native to a given place:She's a Missouri girl.
- Clothing girls, (used with a sing. or pl. v.)
- a range of sizes from 7 to 14, for garments made for girls.
- a garment in this size range.
- the department or section of a store where these garments are sold.
- 1250–1300; Middle English gurle, girle, gerle child, young person; compare Old English gyrela, gi(e)rela, item of dress, apparel (presumably worn by the young in late Old English period, and hence used as a metonym)
- Just as many mature men, even young men, resent being referred to as boys, many adult women today are offended if referred to as girls, or the less formal gals. In business and professional offices, the practice of referring to one's secretary as the girl or my girl, as in I'll have my girl look it up and call you back, has decreased but not disappeared entirely. Such terms as the girls in reference to a group of women, girl or gal Friday in reference to a female secretary or assistant, and bachelor girl in reference to an unmarried woman are increasingly regarded as offensive, and working girl in the sense "a woman who works'' is declining in use. See also lady, woman.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
girl /ɡɜːl/ n
'girl band' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):