Virility
Virility (from the latin word "viri", meaning man or manly) refers to any of a wide range of masculine characteristics viewed positively. It is applicable to women but not to negative characteristics. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED1) says virile is "marked by strength or force." Virility is commonly associated with vigour, health, sturdiness, and constitution, especially in the fathering of children. In this last sense, virility is to men as fertility is to women. OED1 also notes that virile has become obsolete in referring to a "nubile" young woman – "a maid that is Marriageable or ripe for a Husband, or Virill."
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Famous quotes containing the word virility:
“One reason—perhaps the chief—of the virility of the Roosevelts is [their] very democratic spirit. They have never felt that because they were born in a good position they could put their hands in their pockets and succeed. They have felt, rather, that being born in a good position, there is no excuse for them if they did not do their duty by the community.”
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)