ˈkit-nish
as in coquettish
affecting shyness or modesty in order to attract masculine interest
she couldn't see the point in being kittenish about it and decided to just ask him out
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Recent Examples of kittenish
Seductively kittenish, Gardner lives up to her profane reputation.
—
Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2023
Madelyn Cline went full-on Old Hollywood bombshell, kittenish liner, polished lengths, and all.
—Calin Van Paris, Vogue, 15 Jan. 2023
There was much talk of the kittens, their kittenish ways.
—Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, 28 Nov. 2022
To this day, she’s drawn to the bruise of blue that belies the kittenish blush, the tension between the girl next door and the demimondaine, who are not so far apart, who may even be one.
—Susan Dominus Photographs By Joshua Kissi Styled By Ian Bradley Sasha Weiss Photographs By Collier Schorr Styled By Jay Massacret Megan O’Grady Portrait By Mickalene Thomas and Racquel Chevremont Ligaya Mishan Photographs By Tina Barney, New York Times, 14 Oct. 2021
See All Example Sentences for kittenish
Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2023
Madelyn Cline went full-on Old Hollywood bombshell, kittenish liner, polished lengths, and all.
—Calin Van Paris, Vogue, 15 Jan. 2023
There was much talk of the kittens, their kittenish ways.
—Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, 28 Nov. 2022
To this day, she’s drawn to the bruise of blue that belies the kittenish blush, the tension between the girl next door and the demimondaine, who are not so far apart, who may even be one.
—Susan Dominus Photographs By Joshua Kissi Styled By Ian Bradley Sasha Weiss Photographs By Collier Schorr Styled By Jay Massacret Megan O’Grady Portrait By Mickalene Thomas and Racquel Chevremont Ligaya Mishan Photographs By Tina Barney, New York Times, 14 Oct. 2021
See All Example Sentences for kittenish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kittenish
Adjective
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Throughout the visual, the three-time Grammy winner can be seen traipsing through the palace's opulent halls in a coquettish ensemble, capturing the elation of newfound romance.—
Ilana Kaplan,
PEOPLE,
17 Apr. 2026
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The intelligence official, who helps train America’s newest generation of overseas intelligence officers, said these pretend tourists feign a lack of English, adopt a coquettish manner and play dumb to probe the area’s perimeter and identify its weak and strong points.—
Kim Hjelmgaard,
USA Today,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Smith engaged in such coy gamesmanship ahead of Game 1, even on obvious matters such as his starting goalie.—
Andrew Knoll,
Daily News,
22 Apr. 2026
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For now, Anteotokounmpo, 31, remains coy, his words wrapped in riddles and his intentions couched in caveats, even as ESPN continues to report that a trade (somewhere) is viewed as inevitable and even as the two-time MVP insists that a trade is not his decision.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Kittenish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kittenish. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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