Batgirls

Part of speech: noun, plural

Definitions

1. A female character, often associated with superhero narratives, who adopts the persona similar to that of a female counterpart to Batman
2. Young women who embody or take inspiration from the fictional role of Batman's female allies or sidekicks
3. Female figures in comic book lore who participate actively in crime-fighting adventures alongside or in place of male counterparts

Etymology: "Batgirls" is the plural of "batgirl," a compound formed from "bat" and "girl." The combination is a simple one, so the interest lies in the first element: the bat is the animal, and the name is a deliberate echo of Batman, the crime-fighting hero whose name it borrows. A batgirl is, in effect, a female counterpart to that figure, and the plural refers to the many women who have taken up the title across comic book stories. Because the word is built from two ordinary English nouns, its meaning comes directly from its parts: the bat half supplies the costumed, nocturnal identity, and "girl" marks the character as female. The construction follows the same pattern as the many comic-book names that attach a gendered noun to a hero's established name.

Synonyms: female bats, female vigilantes, Batwoman