Definition: Suffragette is a term sometimes used for a woman active in the woman suffrage movement.
A London newspaper first used the term suffragette. British women in the suffrage movement adopted the term for themselves, though earlier the term they used was "suffragist."
In America, the activists working for women's voting preferred the term "suffragist" or "suffrage worker." "Suffragette" was considered a disparaging term in America, much as "women's lib" (short for "women's liberation") was considered a disparaging and belittling term in the 1960s and 1970s.
Also Known As: suffragist, suffrage worker
Common Misspellings: sufragette, suffragete, suffrigette
Examples:
in a 1912 article, W. E. B. Du Bois uses the term "suffragists" within the article, but the original headline was "Suffering Suffragettes"
