adj
Freq #266403
Meanings
-
1
adj
dated, offensive, and usually applied to a woman: supposedly having excessive or uncontrollable sexual desire
The narrator dismisses the woman as nymphomaniacal, using a dated and sexist label rather than describing her fairly.
Thesaurus
Synonyms
1
adj
· dated, offensive, and...
hypersexualsexually compulsive
Word family
Forms
nymphomaniacnymphomaniacs
Related forms
nymphomanianymphomaniachypersexualitysatyriasis
Etymology
Formed from nymphomaniac + -al, after nymphomania. Nymphomania combines Greek nymphe, 'young woman or bride,' with mania, 'madness.' Once treated as a medical diagnosis for supposedly excessive female desire, the term is now dated, gendered, and often offensive; nymphomaniacal commonly survives as a hyperbolic insult.