What does androgyny mean?
Androgyny is the state of combining masculine and feminine qualities, whether in physical appearance, style of dress, behavior, or psychological makeup. The term derives from Greek roots meaning 'man' and 'woman', and it entered English usage in the early modern period. Today it appears most often in discussions of fashion, art, and popular culture — where performers and designers have used androgynous presentation to challenge conventional gender norms — as well as in psychology, where researchers study individuals who score high on both stereotypically masculine and feminine traits. Androgyny differs from intersex conditions: it typically concerns expression and identity rather than anatomy, though historically the word was also applied to biological cases now described as hermaphroditism. As conversations about gender have expanded, androgyny has become an increasingly prominent and useful concept for describing presentations that resist simple binary classification.
nounThe quality or state of having both masculine and feminine characteristics, or of being neither distinctly masculine nor feminine in appearance or identity.
- The presentation or expression of combined masculine and feminine characteristics in appearance, dress, or manner.
- In psychology and gender studies, an individual's possession of both masculine and feminine psychological traits.
- In biology, the rare condition of an organism having both male and female reproductive features (more commonly termed hermaphroditism).
"The model's striking androgyny made her a favorite on avant-garde runways."
"David Bowie's deliberate androgyny challenged conventions of rock stardom in the 1970s."
"Research on psychological androgyny suggests that people who combine assertiveness with sensitivity may adapt flexibly across situations."
Rarely used; androgyny is almost always treated as an abstract mass noun and appears in the plural only in academic contexts referring to multiple distinct manifestations.
"The exhibition explored diverse androgynies across cultures and historical periods."
The word 'androgyny' literally fuses a man and a woman into one term — ancient Greeks even imagined Hermaphroditus as a single being with both male and female bodies.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of androgyny
Androgyny comes from the ancient Greek 'andrógynos', a compound of 'anḗr' (genitive 'andrós'), meaning man, and 'gynḗ', meaning woman. Greek myth personified this fusion in Hermaphroditus, the child of Hermes and Aphrodite who became joined with the nymph Salmacis into a single being of both sexes. The word passed into Latin and entered English in the early modern period, initially carrying strong biological connotations before broadening to describe blended gender presentation and psychological traits. Cognates sharing these roots include 'android' (from 'anḗr') and 'gynecology' and 'misogyny' (from 'gynḗ').
Related word forms
How androgyny is actually used
Mostly used in cultural criticism, fashion, psychology, and gender studies. In everyday speech it is somewhat formal; 'androgynous' (adjective) is more commonly used than the noun form. It carries no inherent negative connotation, though its meaning has broadened considerably in contemporary discussions of gender identity.
Easily confused with androgyny
Hermaphroditism (intersex) refers to the biological condition of having physical characteristics of both sexes, whereas androgyny usually describes presentation or identity blending masculine and feminine traits.
'Androgeny' is a common misspelling; the correct spelling is 'androgyny', from Greek andros (man) + gyne (woman).