Manly describes qualities traditionally associated with men and boys, especially courage, strength, and straightforwardness. When someone shows manly courage, they face difficult situations without backing down. A manly handshake is firm and confident. The word often appears in older books and stories, where characters demonstrate manly virtues like protecting others, keeping their word, or standing up for what's right.

The word carries a specific flavor from earlier times when people had more fixed ideas about how men and women should act. Today, we recognize that courage, strength, and integrity aren't limited to any gender. A girl defending her friend from a bully shows just as much courage as anyone else. Still, you'll encounter manly in classic literature and historical writing, where it meant the qualities people expected from men.

Some people use manly playfully or ironically, like calling something a manly breakfast when it's just an enormous stack of pancakes. Others avoid the word entirely, preferring terms like brave or strong that apply to everyone. The word reveals how ideas about gender roles have shifted over time, and how language changes as society's understanding grows.