epiceneadj.n.

Brit.

/ˈɛpᵻsiːn/, U.S.

/ˈɛpəˌsin/

Forms: late Middle English epcyn, late Middle English episcen, late Middle English epycyn, late Middle English ypsen, late Middle English–1500s epycen, late Middle English–1500s epycene, late Middle English– epicene, 1500s epysyn, 1500s–1700s epicaene, 1500s (1800s– nonstandard) epicine, 1600s epicen, 1600s epicoen, 1600s– epicoene.

Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymons: Latin epicoenon, epicoenum, epicoenos.

Etymology: < classical Latin epicoenon, noun (in post-classical Latin also epicoenum (4th century)) (in the system of ancient grammarians) type of noun (which may be morphologically either masculine or feminine) which may be used for either male or female beings (Quintilian), in post-classical Latin also denoting this type of grammatical gender (4th century), also epicoenos, epicoenus (adjective) designating this gender (4th or 5th century in Augustine) < ancient Greek ἐπίκοινος common to many, promiscuous, in Hellenistic Greek also ἐπίκοινον (noun, short for γένος ἐπίκοινον ), denoting a type of grammatical gender < ἐπι- epi- prefix + κοινός common (see koine n.). Compare Middle French epicene, epichene, French épicène, adjective (c1380).Compare the following early use of the Latin word (in senses A. 1 and B. 1) in an English context:OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 19 Sum cyn is gecweden epicenon[other MSS epicena], þæt is on leden promiscva and on englisc gemenged: hic coruus ðes hremn, swa hwæðer swa hit byð, swa he, swa heo; hic miluus ðes glida, ægðer ge he ge heo; haec aquila ðes earn, ægðer ge he ge heo.OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 243 Þas ðreo cynn synd on ðysum dæle and na ma, forðan ðe on ðisum dæle ne bið nan commvne dvvm genervm, þæt is gemæne twegra cynna, ne nan epicenon, þæt is gemencged cynn.

A. adj.

1. Grammar. In Latin and ancient Greek grammar: designating a class of nouns which may denote either males or females but which have a fixed grammatical gender (masculine, feminine, neuter, etc.); of or relating to such nouns. Hence in modern English and other languages: designating nouns and pronouns which may denote individuals of either sex; of or relating to such nouns. Cf. common adj. 18a.Frequently in epicene gender, although, unlike ‘masculine’, ‘feminine’, etc., this is not an inflectional category.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > gender > [adjective] > denoting either masculine or feminine

epicenec1450

common1650

c1450 in D. Thomson Middle Eng. Grammatical Texts (1984) 34 Alle these nounes be comyn gendyr of tweyne, out-take pantera et dama wheche ben epycen gendre.

a1500 in D. Thomson Middle Eng. Grammatical Texts (1984) 56 Ypsen gendur... How knowyst the epcyn gendur? For vndur oon artycul he comprehendyth bothe male and female.

a1519 J. Colet Æditio (1527) sig. B.ii The epicene gendre is declyned with one artycle, & vnder that one artycle bothe kyndes be betokeneth, as hic passer, a sparowe bothe he and she.

1612 J. Brinsley Posing of Parts f. 4^v Q. Is the Epicene Gender a Gender properly? A. No.

1685 J. Turner Boaz & Ruth 146 I do not speak because..[the word Bacor] is of the masculine gender, for notwithstanding that, its signification might be Epicœne in many cases.

1753 T. Martin Explan. Accidence & Gram. 41 Q. What Nouns are of the Epicene Gender? A. The Names of Birds, Beasts, and Fish.

1865 Sat. Rev. 25 Mar. 348 ‘Boy’ of course is to be understood as an epicene term.

1880 Spelling Reformer Oct. 64/1 I use this word [sc. ‘persons’] not invidiously but as of the Epicene gender.

1900 Mod. Culture Sept. 88/2 Thon, an epicene term approved by eminent philologists.

1963 F. T. Visser Hist. Syntax Eng. Lang. I. i. 75 A pronoun of epicene gender.

1981 Amer. Speech 56 87 Reactions against earlier epicene pronouns often reveal a spirit of antifeminism.

2003 V. Law Hist. Linguistics in Europe iv. 71 There are epicene..nouns, such as passer, ‘sparrow’.

a. Of or relating to people or animals having characteristics of both sexes, or of neither; indeterminate in respect of sex; androgynous; hermaphrodite; spec. (of a man) effeminate, effete. Also figurative: indeterminate, mixed.Frequently in epicene gender.

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > sex and gender > [adjective] > having characteristics of both sexes

bisexed1605

hermaphroditical1605

epicene1607

hermaphrodite1607

hermaphroditic1631

promiscuousa1637

androgynal1646

masculo-feminine1646

androgynous1651

ambosexous1656

hermaphroditish1764

androgyne1765

bisexual1793

hermaphrodital1823

heautandrous1837

amphigonic1876

intersexual1916

intersex1920

intersexed1921

harumphroditic1924

man-womanly1929

ambosexual1931

bi-gendered1976

the world > life > sex and gender > female > effeminacy > [adjective]

womanly?c1225

ferbleta1300

effeminatea1393

nicea1393

softc1450

manlessa1529

unmanly1534

cockney1573

effeminated1580

unmanlikea1586

milky1602

enervate1603

womanizing1615

emasculate1622

womanized1624

softly1643

womanlish1647

unmasculine1649

emollid1656

ladylike1656

enervated1660

emasculated1701

petticoated1708

tea-faced1728

effeminized1789

invirile1870

epicene1881

sissyish1889

sissified1898

devirilized1901

cockless1902

camp1909

pansy1929

campy1932

queenly1933

poncy1937

pansyish1941

swishy1941

moffie1954

poofy1956

femme1963

poofed-up1964

minty1965

ponced-up1970

lavender1979

1607 Bp. J. King Serm. Oxon 5 Nov. 25 Mixt, Hermaphroditical, epicæne, half-borne, and half-vnborne propositions.

1609 Bp. W. Barlow Eagle & Body sig. B2 A Prey to the Eagles of the Epicene gender, both Hees, and Shees.

1624 B. Jonson Neptunes Triumph 260 Of the Epicœne gender, Hees, and Shees: Amphibion Archy is the chiefe.

a1637 B. Jonson Under-woods xlix. 8 in Wks. (1640) III And in an Epicæne fury can write newes.

1647 J. Cleveland Poems (new ed.) in Char. London-diurnall (Wing C4663) 8 Her head is Epicœne [1677 Epicene].

1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 27. ⁋4 All Inamaratoes, or Persons of the Epicene Gender.

1737 Common Sense 10 Sept. 228 All the reputed Female Heroes of Antiquity were of this Epicene Species.

1823 Monthly Rev. 102 541 The fables concerning this epicene Pope [sc. Pope Joan].

1863 C. C. Clarke Shakespeare-characters vii. 170 In his code of morality we have no epicene or doubtful virtues.

1876 T. Hardy Hand of Ethelberta I. iii. 43 What had at first appeared as an epicene shape the decreasing space resolved into a cloaked female.

1881 W. Black Sunrise I. v. 68 An epicene creature; a bundle of languid affectations.

1912 N. W. Durham Hist. City Spokane I. iv. 35 The chief of this tribe was described as an extraordinary being, the Indians alleging that he belonged to the epicene gender.

1952 K. Farrer Missing Link (1955) ii. 20 A spasm of hatred and alarm distorted his fair, rather epicene features.

2012 Daily Tel. (Nexis) 6 Feb. 27 Apart from a few epicene fops, the characters are either robustly straight in their sexual tastes, or else too old or drunk to be interested.

2014 J. Q. Davies Romantic Anatomies of Performance ii. 29 What made many listeners queasiest was Velluti's epicene gender.

b. Considered suitable for either males or females; adapted to or used by both sexes; unisex.

ΚΠ

1625 T. Middleton Game at Chæss i. sig. C2 And you a three pound smocke steed of an Abbey, An Epicene Cassible.

a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) Lincs. 154 Founder of those Epicœne, and Hermaphrodite Convents, wherein Monks and Nuns lived together.

1866 W. D. Howells Venetian Life 25 With tatters of epicene linen.

1905 J. Guinan Soggarth Aroon xvii. 228 The epicene garments of childhood developed into a distinctively male attire.

2000 L. Senelick Changing Room vi. 137 Women's garments, fashioned by men's tailors, included the unisex ruff and sleeves,..epicene hat and shoes, and identical textiles, trim and ornament.

B. n.

1. Grammar. An epicene noun or pronoun; (with the) the epicene gender or form. See sense A. 1.

ΚΠ

1495 Accedence (de Worde) sig. Aiiij How many gendres ben there in a nowne .vij. whiche .vij. The masculyne. the feminine. the neutre. the comyn of .ij. the comyn of .iij. the epycene.

1528 Impeachm. Wolsey in F. J. Furnivall Ballads from MSS (1868) I. 356 Wherefor all gendyrs dysconte[nt] be..The dubyum & the epysyn Also.

1612 J. Brinsley Posing of Parts f. 44 But how shall the Gender be knowne in Epicens?

1753 T. Martin Explan. Accidence & Gram. 41 Q. Why are these Nouns called Epicenes? A. Because they are common to both Sexes.

1758 T. Nugent New Method of learning Lat. Tongue I. i. 56 The Epicene is not a distinct gender from the rest; but only a particular application of the other genders.

1822 T. Haigh Theory & Pract. Lat. Inflection i. 13 An epicene with a neuter ending is generally masculine.

1917 H. W. Wright Sacra Idulia in Ovid's Fasti (Ph.D. Thesis, Univ. of Pennsylvania) 52 Porca is also used as an epicene interchangeably with porcus.

2001 A. Garnham Mental Models & Interpr. Anaphora vi. 68 Italian epicenes, nouns such as ‘la vittima’ (the victim) which have a fixed syntactic gender..but can refer to both males and females.

2. A person having characteristics of both sexes, or of neither; a person of indeterminate sex; a hermaphrodite, transsexual, or transvestite.In quot. 1616 as the name of the female character Epicœne in Ben Jonson's play of the same name, who is revealed at the play's end to be a man disguised as a woman.

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > sex and gender > [noun] > state or condition of having characteristics of both sexes > person or animal

scratc1000

androgyneOE

hermaphroditec1400

scarth?a1513

man-woman1587

she-mana1613

epicene1641

will-jill1677

morphoditea1726

bisexual1879

pseudohermaphrodite1881

harumfrodite1896

sex mosaic1903

intersex1916

intersexual1917

1616 B. Jonson (title) Epicœne, or The silent woman.]

1641 Novembris Monstrum 120 Ignatius eldest sonne, an Epicene, Proteus in doctrine; a iust courtier Priest.

1658 T. Bromhall Treat. Specters i. 155 When this Epicæne entered into other houses, and a while after they did kill men; therefore the Hermaphrodite was attached and apprehended.

1739 Ess. & Lett. Var. Subj. 135 I am very apprehensive the Generality of our Epicenes will proceed from one Step to another, 'til they become perfect Men.

1784 Town & Country Mag. June 307/1 These epicenes, who have scarcely any manhood, but what the dress bestows.

1831 H. Neele Romance Hist. I. 227 He has gone to take leave of his Epicene.

1873 E. H. Clarke Sex in Educ. 44 [Arrest of development]..substitutes..a wiry..masculineness..making her an epicene.

1922 Illinois Med. Jrnl. Mar. 167/1 The period of domination by the epicene—in other words, the fat-thighed man and the skinny hipped woman—has been the period in the history of every great nation, just preceding the fall of that nation.

1962 ‘J. Woodford’ Autobiogr. xxiii. 209 The epicene is seldom seen in Chicago. To this day a fag can get beaten up easily there.

2005 P. Hardie in S. Harrison Compan. Lat. Lit. ii. vi. 98 A similar fascination with the epicene is found in the unfinished Achilleid, whose..fragment narrates the boyhood of its hero Achilles and his mother Thetis' attempt to spare him from the Trojan War by dressing him up as a girl.

Derivatives

ˈepicenism n. the condition or quality of having characteristics of both sexes; androgyny.

ΚΠ

1850 Fraser's Mag. 41 331 Even Shakspere sometimes slides into the temptation which this epicenism [sc. the performance of female parts by male actors] presents to unlicensed wit.

1970 Mississippi Q. 23 294 While it would be inaccurate to call Cecily a lesbian, her frequently reiterated epicenism indicates a certain confusion of sexual roles.

1999 W. Graham Henry James's Thwarted Love iii. 127 Underlying James's hostility to Pater is a (dis)identification with epicenism and preciosity.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2016; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	epicene
释义	epiceneadj.n. Brit. /ˈɛpᵻsiːn/, U.S. /ˈɛpəˌsin/ Forms: late Middle English epcyn, late Middle English episcen, late Middle English epycyn, late Middle English ypsen, late Middle English–1500s epycen, late Middle English–1500s epycene, late Middle English– epicene, 1500s epysyn, 1500s–1700s epicaene, 1500s (1800s– nonstandard) epicine, 1600s epicen, 1600s epicoen, 1600s– epicoene. Origin: A borrowing from Latin. Etymons: Latin epicoenon, epicoenum, epicoenos. Etymology: < classical Latin epicoenon, noun (in post-classical Latin also epicoenum (4th century)) (in the system of ancient grammarians) type of noun (which may be morphologically either masculine or feminine) which may be used for either male or female beings (Quintilian), in post-classical Latin also denoting this type of grammatical gender (4th century), also epicoenos, epicoenus (adjective) designating this gender (4th or 5th century in Augustine) < ancient Greek ἐπίκοινος common to many, promiscuous, in Hellenistic Greek also ἐπίκοινον (noun, short for γένος ἐπίκοινον ), denoting a type of grammatical gender < ἐπι- epi- prefix + κοινός common (see koine n.). Compare Middle French epicene, epichene, French épicène, adjective (c1380).Compare the following early use of the Latin word (in senses A. 1 and B. 1) in an English context:OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 19 Sum cyn is gecweden epicenon[other MSS epicena], þæt is on leden promiscva and on englisc gemenged: hic coruus ðes hremn, swa hwæðer swa hit byð, swa he, swa heo; hic miluus ðes glida, ægðer ge he ge heo; haec aquila ðes earn, ægðer ge he ge heo.OE Ælfric Gram. (St. John's Oxf.) 243 Þas ðreo cynn synd on ðysum dæle and na ma, forðan ðe on ðisum dæle ne bið nan commvne dvvm genervm, þæt is gemæne twegra cynna, ne nan epicenon, þæt is gemencged cynn. A. adj. 1. Grammar. In Latin and ancient Greek grammar: designating a class of nouns which may denote either males or females but which have a fixed grammatical gender (masculine, feminine, neuter, etc.); of or relating to such nouns. Hence in modern English and other languages: designating nouns and pronouns which may denote individuals of either sex; of or relating to such nouns. Cf. common adj. 18a.Frequently in epicene gender, although, unlike ‘masculine’, ‘feminine’, etc., this is not an inflectional category. ΘΚΠ the mind > language > linguistics > study of grammar > gender > [adjective] > denoting either masculine or feminine epicenec1450 common1650 c1450 in D. Thomson Middle Eng. Grammatical Texts (1984) 34 Alle these nounes be comyn gendyr of tweyne, out-take pantera et dama wheche ben epycen gendre. a1500 in D. Thomson Middle Eng. Grammatical Texts (1984) 56 Ypsen gendur... How knowyst the epcyn gendur? For vndur oon artycul he comprehendyth bothe male and female. a1519 J. Colet Æditio (1527) sig. B.ii The epicene gendre is declyned with one artycle, & vnder that one artycle bothe kyndes be betokeneth, as hic passer, a sparowe bothe he and she. 1612 J. Brinsley Posing of Parts f. 4^v Q. Is the Epicene Gender a Gender properly? A. No. 1685 J. Turner Boaz & Ruth 146 I do not speak because..[the word Bacor] is of the masculine gender, for notwithstanding that, its signification might be Epicœne in many cases. 1753 T. Martin Explan. Accidence & Gram. 41 Q. What Nouns are of the Epicene Gender? A. The Names of Birds, Beasts, and Fish. 1865 Sat. Rev. 25 Mar. 348 ‘Boy’ of course is to be understood as an epicene term. 1880 Spelling Reformer Oct. 64/1 I use this word [sc. ‘persons’] not invidiously but as of the Epicene gender. 1900 Mod. Culture Sept. 88/2 Thon, an epicene term approved by eminent philologists. 1963 F. T. Visser Hist. Syntax Eng. Lang. I. i. 75 A pronoun of epicene gender. 1981 Amer. Speech 56 87 Reactions against earlier epicene pronouns often reveal a spirit of antifeminism. 2003 V. Law Hist. Linguistics in Europe iv. 71 There are epicene..nouns, such as passer, ‘sparrow’. 2. a. Of or relating to people or animals having characteristics of both sexes, or of neither; indeterminate in respect of sex; androgynous; hermaphrodite; spec. (of a man) effeminate, effete. Also figurative: indeterminate, mixed.Frequently in epicene gender. ΘΚΠ the world > life > sex and gender > [adjective] > having characteristics of both sexes bisexed1605 hermaphroditical1605 epicene1607 hermaphrodite1607 hermaphroditic1631 promiscuousa1637 androgynal1646 masculo-feminine1646 androgynous1651 ambosexous1656 hermaphroditish1764 androgyne1765 bisexual1793 hermaphrodital1823 heautandrous1837 amphigonic1876 intersexual1916 intersex1920 intersexed1921 harumphroditic1924 man-womanly1929 ambosexual1931 bi-gendered1976 the world > life > sex and gender > female > effeminacy > [adjective] womanly?c1225 ferbleta1300 effeminatea1393 nicea1393 softc1450 manlessa1529 unmanly1534 cockney1573 effeminated1580 unmanlikea1586 milky1602 enervate1603 womanizing1615 emasculate1622 womanized1624 softly1643 womanlish1647 unmasculine1649 emollid1656 ladylike1656 enervated1660 emasculated1701 petticoated1708 tea-faced1728 effeminized1789 invirile1870 epicene1881 sissyish1889 sissified1898 devirilized1901 cockless1902 camp1909 pansy1929 campy1932 queenly1933 poncy1937 pansyish1941 swishy1941 moffie1954 poofy1956 femme1963 poofed-up1964 minty1965 ponced-up1970 lavender1979 1607 Bp. J. King Serm. Oxon 5 Nov. 25 Mixt, Hermaphroditical, epicæne, half-borne, and half-vnborne propositions. 1609 Bp. W. Barlow Eagle & Body sig. B2 A Prey to the Eagles of the Epicene gender, both Hees, and Shees. 1624 B. Jonson Neptunes Triumph 260 Of the Epicœne gender, Hees, and Shees: Amphibion Archy is the chiefe. a1637 B. Jonson Under-woods xlix. 8 in Wks. (1640) III And in an Epicæne fury can write newes. 1647 J. Cleveland Poems (new ed.) in Char. London-diurnall (Wing C4663) 8 Her head is Epicœne [1677 Epicene]. 1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 27. ⁋4 All Inamaratoes, or Persons of the Epicene Gender. 1737 Common Sense 10 Sept. 228 All the reputed Female Heroes of Antiquity were of this Epicene Species. 1823 Monthly Rev. 102 541 The fables concerning this epicene Pope [sc. Pope Joan]. 1863 C. C. Clarke Shakespeare-characters vii. 170 In his code of morality we have no epicene or doubtful virtues. 1876 T. Hardy Hand of Ethelberta I. iii. 43 What had at first appeared as an epicene shape the decreasing space resolved into a cloaked female. 1881 W. Black Sunrise I. v. 68 An epicene creature; a bundle of languid affectations. 1912 N. W. Durham Hist. City Spokane I. iv. 35 The chief of this tribe was described as an extraordinary being, the Indians alleging that he belonged to the epicene gender. 1952 K. Farrer Missing Link (1955) ii. 20 A spasm of hatred and alarm distorted his fair, rather epicene features. 2012 Daily Tel. (Nexis) 6 Feb. 27 Apart from a few epicene fops, the characters are either robustly straight in their sexual tastes, or else too old or drunk to be interested. 2014 J. Q. Davies Romantic Anatomies of Performance ii. 29 What made many listeners queasiest was Velluti's epicene gender. b. Considered suitable for either males or females; adapted to or used by both sexes; unisex. ΚΠ 1625 T. Middleton Game at Chæss i. sig. C2 And you a three pound smocke steed of an Abbey, An Epicene Cassible. a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) Lincs. 154 Founder of those Epicœne, and Hermaphrodite Convents, wherein Monks and Nuns lived together. 1866 W. D. Howells Venetian Life 25 With tatters of epicene linen. 1905 J. Guinan Soggarth Aroon xvii. 228 The epicene garments of childhood developed into a distinctively male attire. 2000 L. Senelick Changing Room vi. 137 Women's garments, fashioned by men's tailors, included the unisex ruff and sleeves,..epicene hat and shoes, and identical textiles, trim and ornament. B. n. 1. Grammar. An epicene noun or pronoun; (with the) the epicene gender or form. See sense A. 1. ΚΠ 1495 Accedence (de Worde) sig. Aiiij How many gendres ben there in a nowne .vij. whiche .vij. The masculyne. the feminine. the neutre. the comyn of .ij. the comyn of .iij. the epycene. 1528 Impeachm. Wolsey in F. J. Furnivall Ballads from MSS (1868) I. 356 Wherefor all gendyrs dysconte[nt] be..The dubyum & the epysyn Also. 1612 J. Brinsley Posing of Parts f. 44 But how shall the Gender be knowne in Epicens? 1753 T. Martin Explan. Accidence & Gram. 41 Q. Why are these Nouns called Epicenes? A. Because they are common to both Sexes. 1758 T. Nugent New Method of learning Lat. Tongue I. i. 56 The Epicene is not a distinct gender from the rest; but only a particular application of the other genders. 1822 T. Haigh Theory & Pract. Lat. Inflection i. 13 An epicene with a neuter ending is generally masculine. 1917 H. W. Wright Sacra Idulia in Ovid's Fasti (Ph.D. Thesis, Univ. of Pennsylvania) 52 Porca is also used as an epicene interchangeably with porcus. 2001 A. Garnham Mental Models & Interpr. Anaphora vi. 68 Italian epicenes, nouns such as ‘la vittima’ (the victim) which have a fixed syntactic gender..but can refer to both males and females. 2. A person having characteristics of both sexes, or of neither; a person of indeterminate sex; a hermaphrodite, transsexual, or transvestite.In quot. 1616 as the name of the female character Epicœne in Ben Jonson's play of the same name, who is revealed at the play's end to be a man disguised as a woman. ΘΚΠ the world > life > sex and gender > [noun] > state or condition of having characteristics of both sexes > person or animal scratc1000 androgyneOE hermaphroditec1400 scarth?a1513 man-woman1587 she-mana1613 epicene1641 will-jill1677 morphoditea1726 bisexual1879 pseudohermaphrodite1881 harumfrodite1896 sex mosaic1903 intersex1916 intersexual1917 1616 B. Jonson (title) Epicœne, or The silent woman.] 1641 Novembris Monstrum 120 Ignatius eldest sonne, an Epicene, Proteus in doctrine; a iust courtier Priest. 1658 T. Bromhall Treat. Specters i. 155 When this Epicæne entered into other houses, and a while after they did kill men; therefore the Hermaphrodite was attached and apprehended. 1739 Ess. & Lett. Var. Subj. 135 I am very apprehensive the Generality of our Epicenes will proceed from one Step to another, 'til they become perfect Men. 1784 Town & Country Mag. June 307/1 These epicenes, who have scarcely any manhood, but what the dress bestows. 1831 H. Neele Romance Hist. I. 227 He has gone to take leave of his Epicene. 1873 E. H. Clarke Sex in Educ. 44 [Arrest of development]..substitutes..a wiry..masculineness..making her an epicene. 1922 Illinois Med. Jrnl. Mar. 167/1 The period of domination by the epicene—in other words, the fat-thighed man and the skinny hipped woman—has been the period in the history of every great nation, just preceding the fall of that nation. 1962 ‘J. Woodford’ Autobiogr. xxiii. 209 The epicene is seldom seen in Chicago. To this day a fag can get beaten up easily there. 2005 P. Hardie in S. Harrison Compan. Lat. Lit. ii. vi. 98 A similar fascination with the epicene is found in the unfinished Achilleid, whose..fragment narrates the boyhood of its hero Achilles and his mother Thetis' attempt to spare him from the Trojan War by dressing him up as a girl. Derivatives ˈepicenism n. the condition or quality of having characteristics of both sexes; androgyny. ΚΠ 1850 Fraser's Mag. 41 331 Even Shakspere sometimes slides into the temptation which this epicenism [sc. the performance of female parts by male actors] presents to unlicensed wit. 1970 Mississippi Q. 23 294 While it would be inaccurate to call Cecily a lesbian, her frequently reiterated epicenism indicates a certain confusion of sexual roles. 1999 W. Graham Henry James's Thwarted Love iii. 127 Underlying James's hostility to Pater is a (dis)identification with epicenism and preciosity. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2016; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < adj.n.c1450
随便看	determiner determiners determines determing delivery office delivery officer delivery order delivery paralysis delivery pipe delivery port delivery roller delivery room delivery system delivery truck delivery tube delivery valve delivery van deliveryman delk dell della crusca della robbia della-cruscan della-cruscanism dellacruscan