Friendship is the close and trusting relationship between friends. It involves mutual care, support, and enjoyment of each other’s company.
From Old English “frēondscipe,” combining “frēond” (friend) and “-scipe” (state or condition). It has long described the state of being friends.
Friendship is one of the few relationships you choose entirely by choice, not biology or law. That freedom makes it fragile but also incredibly meaningful—each friend is a repeated ‘yes’ over time.
Ideas of friendship have been gendered, with men’s friendships historically framed as serious and political and women’s as private or frivolous. Cross-gender friendships, especially involving women, were often policed or suspected of impropriety.
Use “friendship” without assuming gendered norms about emotional depth or acceptable closeness. Avoid implying that certain genders cannot have “real” friendships with each other.
Women’s friendships have underpinned social movements, caregiving networks, and intellectual circles, often outside formal institutions that excluded them.
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