# Girly-girl



## jupa

Does anyone know how to express the idea of a "girly-girl" in italian? --A girl that's kind of afraid to get dirty-- A girl that's more interested in make-up and clothes. --Very delicate --very....girly?


----------



## danalto

You'll have to have a lot of fantasy! LOL

The first word that occurs to me is perfettina, but this refers olny to the first part of your request !


----------



## Pamela fluente

I dont't know what girly-girl really means. Is it positive or negative. 
If positive
"una bambolina", "una ragazza molto femminile"
if negative
"una svampita"
If said to a man:
"una femminuccia"

I need more information on the exact meaning of your expression. Can you make some examples?

pamela


----------



## danalto

In my dic girlie is translated with ragazzina, or prostituta.
But girlie girl suggests me something like the word I just posted.
Let's wait for the natives!


----------



## Andre Balian

Here's an example.

A: Is she going to come on the hike with us?
B: No, she's too much of a girly-girl.  

As opposed to a tom-boy (a girl who does boy stuff) I suppose.


----------



## Andre Balian

danalto said:
			
		

> In my dic girlie is translated with ragazzina, or prostituta.
> But girlie girl suggests to me something like the word I just posted.
> Let's wait for the natives!


No, it's much more innocent!


----------



## danalto

Una che ha la puzza sotto il naso?


----------



## jupa

It can be both negative or positive. Depending on how the person takes it and the context. I've been called a girly-girl and haven't been offended.

Example #1
(This sounds random, but it's happened!)

When a group of friends and I went for a walk, they saw a mulberry bush (more of a tree!) and decided to pick some berries. However, in order to reach them, one had to climb over a fence then up into the tree. I did not want to do this AT ALL. So, I simply said, "I know, I know. I'm a girly-girl. Go ahead. I'll wait here"

Example #2

A girl that wears lots of pink, often wears skirts, etc.

Example #3
A girl that isn't very athletic.

I would never call a male a "girly-girl". I've heard "girly-man" before, however. 

I hope I clarified.


----------



## danalto

How about femminuccia?


----------



## Pamela fluente

I am Italian (trying to speak english). 
I would use different words in the different sentences.
1 I'm a girly-girl. = 
"Sono una ragazza, andate voi, io aspetto qui
or
"Non sono un maschiaccio come voi, pensateci voi
2. Bambola, Bambolina, un bijou (also used altough not italian)
3. una ragazza femminile
una ragazza dolce e femminile
"Dolce" is probably too strong (= sweet) 
If you teasing a man:
"una femminuccia", un uomo/ragazzo effeminato
if you want to be more heavy:
"una checca" (would this be similar to sissy?)
more heavy:
"un frocetto"

The world which has been suggested "Perfettina" I think does not
render the essence your meaning. It refers to someone who want to looks
always ok, who is precise, or perhaps does all her homework well ...
not necessarily "girly", I think ...

After all, perhaps "femminile" get closer most of the time ...
If you are referring to a man the word is "effeminato", and usually
it is not a positive connotation.

A presto,
Pamela


----------



## Andre Balian

Pamela fluente said:
			
		

> I am Italian (trying to speak english).
> I would use different words in the different sentences.
> ....
> I think  the word which has been suggested "Perfettina" I think does not render the essence your meaning _(brava, scritto molto elegante)_. It refers to someone who wants to always  looks ok, who is precise, or perhaps does all her homework well ...
> not necessarily "girly", I think ...
> 
> After all, perhaps "femminile" is (si puo' dire _gets_) closer most of the time ...
> A presto,
> Pamela


Se non ti dispiace, alcuni piccole correzioni...


----------



## Pamela fluente

I am very happy about being corrected. I would like someone like you would follow me all day long, correcting all my wrong sentences.

I am a programmer and have written some pages posted on the internet, would you like to provide some corrections for my clumsiest and indecent phrases?

-Pam


----------



## lsp

Pamela fluente said:
			
		

> I am very happy about being corrected. I would like it if someone like you would follow me all day long, correcting all my wrong sentences.
> 
> I am a programmer and have written some pages posted on the internet, would you like to provide some corrections for my clumsiest and indecent phrases?
> 
> -Pam


Your English is excellent. One hint, "indecent" is most commonly used to describe behavior or language that is inappropriate or obscene, not merely incorrect or inaccurate, like an X-rated film, for example.


----------



## Pamela fluente

The correnponding Italian "indecente"sound a kind of ilaric. 

Similarly I could say that my spoken english is really obscene!
(not meaning I talk about sex)

Don't know if in English you get the same effect.


----------



## lsp

Pamela fluente said:
			
		

> The corresponding Italian "indecente"sounds a kind of ilaric.
> 
> Similarly I could say that my spoken english is really obscene!
> (not meaning I talk about sex)
> 
> Don't know if in English you get the same effect.


No, I think obscene misses the mark. BTW, what is ilaric?


----------



## Senordineroman

And how about the idea of "girly" in Spanish?  Or even "womanly"?  

Examples:  What I like about my fiance is that she is very womanly, very tender,...she is very womanly, yet she can be girly at the same time with her laugh and the way she skips across the side walk.

Get the picture?


----------



## leenico

> After all, perhaps "femminile" get closer most of the time ...
> If you are referring to a man the word is "effeminato", and usually
> it is not a positive connotation.


 The term for men is "girly men."
Arnold Schwarzenegger, the weight lifter and Hollywood actor turned California state governor, accused the state legislature of being "girly-men."


----------



## Silvia

In general, I would say a girlie girl is either a bambolina or a ragazza molle, but it's not something we would say speaking in first person, rather something you say when describing someone else.


----------



## Pamela fluente

I piked up the wrong word. I meant ironic (how do you say self-ironic or auto-ironic ?).

Doesn't not even sound autoironic in English?

If not ,that's some difference about the use of language...

-Pam 



			
				lsp said:
			
		

> No, I think obscene misses the mark. BTW, what is ilaric?


----------



## Pamela fluente

girly and girlie are the same thing?



			
				Silvia said:
			
		

> In general, I would say a girlie girl is either a bambolina or a ragazza molle, but it's not something we would say speaking in first person, rather something you say when describing someone else.


----------



## Pamela fluente

This is interesting. It's like you are suggesting a new hue of meaning.
Here girly take the connotation of something childish. So it is similar to feminine but in a way that is not full. Which has something typical of the behavior of little girls. Certainly not fully mature ...

Is that so?



			
				ChrisCashman said:
			
		

> And how about the idea of "girly" in Spanish? Or even "womanly"?
> 
> Examples: What I like about my fiance is that she is very womanly, very tender,...she is very womanly, yet she can be girly at the same time with her laugh and the way she skips across the side walk.
> 
> Get the picture?


----------



## Silvia

Pamela fluente said:
			
		

> girly and girlie are the same thing?


Oh, I don't know... maybe someone will answer this!


----------



## You little ripper!

"Girly" and "girlie" are the same thing, just different spelling. "Girlie" has the added meaning "of naked women" as in, "he likes to look at girlie magazines".


----------



## JLuis

HOLA, para quien preguntó el equivalente en español, de acuerdo al ejemplo 1 y 2  de JUPA:

Me parece que esta actitud en México sería de una "niña fresa", ¿qué opinan en el foro? Aclaración, "niña fresa" no se utiliza en toda hispanoamérica, así que sean bienvenidas los sinónimos también a esta expresión. 

Para el ejemplo 3, no se me ocurre nada.  

Saludos.


----------



## foxfirebrand

ChrisCashman said:
			
		

> What I like about my fiance is that she is very womanly, very tender,...she is very womanly, yet she can be girly at the same time with her laugh and the way she skips across the side walk.


I think you want "girlish" here-- the connotation is positive, indicates that she hasn't outgrown her spontaneity and sense of fun.

"Girly girl" is like this but a little more negative, just a trace.  It focuses on the squeamishness of girls-- the kind who say "eeeuw!" when a little boy pulls a frog or a big bug out of his pocket.

The prissy, above-it-all aspect of a girly girl-- it's what feminists of the 70s objected to in the "ultrafeminine" stereotype.  _Puzza sott' o naso_ conveys a little too much disdain or haughtiness-- such a woman is "stuck up" or snooty, not overly "feminine."

Maybe some of that elaboration on the English expression will inspire a native speaker to come up with a more exact translation-- if there is one.  I have to add that to my ear "girly girl" is a little unusual.  I'd call such a person a "princess."
.


----------



## erick

I'm not in agreement with all the above explanations for girlie-girl, but I think each person's interpretation of it is idiosyncratically defined so I'll offer my own with the hope that it throws light on the expression.

If I were to think of this on a spectrum, I'd put "tomboy" on one end and "girlie-girl" on the opposite, with a range of types in between.  It's true that a so-called girlie-girl may be the type that yelps when she sees a spider, but I've known plenty of tomboys who've reacted in the same manner.  
The term applies best when describing someone's disposition, demeanor, appearance, and manner.  Girlie girls have a "softer" image: someone who wears skirts or dresses (this point may apply more to America: living in France and Italy I got the impression that all girls wear them often enough), likes flowers, pastel colors, speaks softly, etc.  (I know it sounds like a shallow generalization but GG is meant to be a generalization.)  Meanwhile a tomboy can be androgynous, almost always dresses in trousers, may carry herself brusquely, be "hard" and often athletic, outspoken, and if she's so inclined can behave as "one of the boys."  "Girlie girl" doesn't have to be a negative term.  Personally I strongly favor dating girlie girls over tomboys because I like to feel a sense of gender contrast between us, so count me as one who sees the term in a positive light.  Yet "girlie girl" can be and often is used disdainfully, implicating them as weak or helpless.  Other people may say, "oh she's such a girlie girl" to exclude her from plans for some rigorous activity.  Hiking in the outdoors or whatnot.

I associate the term "girlie girl" with "cute."  A GG is always feminine but the reverse is not true: a woman can be feminine without being a GG.  As some already mentioned, a girlie girl is feminine in a younger sense.  This is different from, say, a refined and elegant woman who is "feminine" but not "girlie."  I think "girlie girl" is a neutral term that can be made slightly negative or positive depending on the tone of speech: "Oh she's _such_ a girlie-girl, she can't handle ________."  If a girl says of herself, "I'm a girlie-girl" it doesn't mean she's putting herself down (same applies for a "tomboy.")
I think Chris's example is fine:
"she is very womanly, yet she can be girly"
Fox says: "I think you want "girlish" her"
I believe that in this case, the two words can used interchangeably, with "girly" being a diminuitive form of "girlish."

In my eyes a girlie girl is not, "prissy, above-it-all" but a princess certainly can be.  The word "princess" is another can of worms: a person who imagines herself a cynosure; the deserving center of adulation and a person who feels entitled to emotional and material attention.  In most cases calling a person a "princess" carries negative connotations.  That's just my take on it ...


----------



## Pamela fluente

Da noi si usa dire anche dire "una principessa sul pisello", l'espressione suona un po' sfottente a causa del doppio senso (infatti "pisello" e' anche usato volgarmente per penis), anche se naturalmente il riferimento è alla fiaba di Andersen, dove c'e' una ragazza che Sente un pisello attraverso venti materassi e venti grossi cuscini di piume e dunque e' una vera principessa!

http://www.ilnarrastorie.it/Andersen/La.principessa.sul.pisello93.html


ps
Comunque non e' facile rendere esattamente girly e girlie girl. Mi pare che gli stessi nativi abbiano percezioni lievemente differenti. Sembra che si parli di una femminilita non piena con atteggiamenti infantili e quasi bambineschi. Potrebbe quasi esse un' "oca". Ma il fatto che una lo possa usare con riferimento a se stessa lo esclude. A me veramente suona strano che una dica di essere una girly girl, suona realmente girly!

-pam


----------



## Pamela fluente

Mi sa che qui è il caso di sfoderare un po' di diminutivi e vezzeggiativi...

 I will try to recap according to what has been suggested thus far, please correct me if am not there...

girly girl  femminuccia, ragazza delicata
girlie girl   ragazzina carina, ragazzetta sexy
girlish woman:  donna che ha, a tratti, le espressioni o gli atteggiamenti di una ragazzina
girly man:    femminuccia, uomo effeminato
tom-boy:  maschiaccio




			
				foxfirebrand said:
			
		

> Maybe some of that elaboration on the English expression will inspire a native speaker to come up with a more exact translation-- if there is one. I have to add that to my ear "girly girl" is a little unusual. I'd call such a person a "princess."
> .


----------



## jupa

Erick hit the nail on the head. His explanation of girly-girl is exactly what I meant when I started this thread.


----------



## CristinaBurke

Ho trovato questa parola "girly" in un dialogo tra due donne adulte, molto amiche, amiche di vecchia data...
Non si vedono da un pò di tempo...si abbracciano e nel mentre una di loro due dice a l'altra..."ehi! girly..."
Lo dice in modo affettuoso...quindi non credo sia "femminuccia " o "pefettina"...forse la vuole chiamare "ragazzina"...nel senso che anche se ha 30 ne dimostra meno?...ho cercato la spiegazione di Girly ed ho trovato, "ragazza che usa mettersi il lucidalabbra, ha i capelli lunghi, si veste come una ragazza giovane...ecc...


----------



## Hillbilly

lsp said:
			
		

> No, I think obscene misses the mark. BTW, what is ilaric?



I disagree.  It may not be a common usage, but I think you can use "obscene" in a non-literal sense; for instance, to describe a really bad singer.


----------



## lsp

Hillbilly said:
			
		

> I disagree.  It may not be a common usage, but I think you can use "obscene" in a non-literal sense; for instance, to describe a really bad singer.


If a non-native said it in the context of the original post or in your example, I would think he or she didn't fully understand the word. When you are fully fluent, you have a little more leeway with vocabulary.


----------



## kan3malato

Hi!!
This is my modest contribute
Girly girl
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia 

Girly girl is a slang term for a girl or woman who chooses to dress and behave in a traditionally feminine style, such as wearing pink or floral dresses, blouses and skirts, wearing make-up, talking about relationships and other activities which are associated with the traditional gender role of a girl. In addition to wearing feminine clothing and cosmetics, people may sometimes stereotype someone as a "girly girl" for decorating (whether it be their room or the clothing they wear) with a lot of pink. It is an informal term, and in most contexts, it is at least mildly derogatory.

The term has become more common as a term of disdain or abuse among some people, particularly tomboys and some feminists, since the "second wave" of feminism in the 1960s and '70s, after which gender-blind clothing and/or behaviour started to become more prevalent among females. Whether "traditionally feminine" traits are inherently repressive or harmful to women is a matter of some debate.


----------



## nellcote

salve a tutti / e,

ho usato questa espressione riguardo al mio modo di essere e di vestire
quando ero insieme ad un ragazzo di madre lingua inglese.
ma temo forse di aver fatto un errore! 

per me una "girly girl" ama apparire in maniera decisamente femminile e graziosa. 
ad esempio: vestitini con motivi floreali, ballerine coi brillantini e borsette griffate.
insomma un pò una principessina.

io invece sono più una ragazza che mette jeans, stivali,
indosso colori scuri, mi piacciono le giacche di pelle,
mi sento un pò ridicola con abiti molto leziosi.
però curo la mia persona e il mio aspetto fisico! ci tengo, eccome.
ecco, quello che temo è che lui abbia pensato che io sia un maschiaccio,
perchè in realtà non lo sono, anzi...
sotto la giacca di pelle sono abbastanza tradizionalista,
una ragazza all'antica per certi versi.

ho sbagliato espressione secondo voi?

vi ringrazio per il vostro aiuto!


----------



## Odysseus54

Se ti vesti come Gianna Nannini quando va in moto e poi ti descrivi col termine 'girly girl', effettivamente un po' di confusione puoi averla creata, ma solo al livello di " Mah ! cosa vorra' dire ? "  

Comunque, guarda che anche noi maschiacci ci teniamo all'aspetto - anch'io giro con giacca di pelle e stivali e vado in moto, ma un paio di volte al mese la doccia me la faccio.

Perche' ti sei descritta come 'girly' ?  Pensavi di metterlo in soggezione se non specificavi ?  Lo chiedo perche' e' la situazione che detta come ti saresti potuta esprimere.


----------



## nellcote

grazie Odysseus54,
avevo messo il post in un altro thread ma è stato spostato qui
ed è sparito il titolo, così si è creata un pò di confusione...
in realtà io ho detto a lui: "I'm not a very girly girl",
(questo infatti era il titolo originale del mio post)
non gli ho detto che sono girly. 
adesso la mia preoccupazione era quella di esser passata per una buzzurra,
mentre in realtà mi curo ma non amo mettere vestiti particolarmente femminili.
insomma mi domando se questo ragazzo possa aver dedotto:
"questa si mette un paio di jeans, poi va al bar e fa le gare di rutti con la birra".
ecco, tutti qui.


----------



## Odysseus54

Aaaah - gli hai detto, in italiano, piu' o meno : ' non sono leziosa '  - dico leziosa perche' 'girly' non e' sinonimo di 'femminile' ( o contrario di 'maschiaccia' ).  Immagino che si tratti di una conoscenza da lontano, perche' specificare di non essere 'girly' se uno vede di persona come sei, come ti vesti, come ti muovi , suonerebbe un po' ridondante.


----------



## bladedrummer

The negative acception of girly-girl is perfectly rendered with "perfettina" or "precisina", meaning a girl who doesn't like to get dirty. There are regional Italian words that also express this concept such as: "fighetta" or "cremina". 

-She's too much of a girly-girl to go camping-. -E' troppo perfettina/fighetta/precisina per andare in campeggio-.

A positive acception of girly-girl would be "ragazza molto femminile". 

I hope this helps the discussion. 

P.S.: @Andre Balian "Se non ti dispiace, alcunE piccole correzioni...".


----------

