1
: notably or deliberately masculine in appearance or manner
2
: closely cropped
a butch haircut
butch noun
butchness noun

Examples of butch in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Maybe not as uniformly vivid as his sister, Bernadette — such a pretty name for such a tough broad, in Lea DeLaria’s priceless, super-butch performance — but vivid enough to be memorable. Marilyn Stasio, Variety, 28 Apr. 2022 In her academic work, Butler argues that gender and sexuality are both constructed and performative; butch identity, as female masculinity, subverts the notion that masculinity is the natural and exclusive purview of the male body. Kerry Manders, New York Times, 13 Apr. 2020 With Mercedes McCambridge, unforgettable as Crawford's butch nemesis, as well as Ernest Borgnine, Scott Brady, John Carradine, Royal Dano, Ward Bond, and Ben Cooper. Patrick Friel, Chicago Reader, 26 June 2018 In this context, Jack feels welcome: Who said only butch gay men should be stars? Willa Paskin, Slate Magazine, 28 Sep. 2017

Word History

Etymology

probably from Butch, male nickname

First Known Use

1939, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of butch was in 1939

Dictionary Entries Near butch

Cite this Entry

“Butch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/butch. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on butch

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!