History Main / DudeLooksLikeALady

* Inverted in the film version of ''Film/DarkShadows''. During the party at Collinwood, Barnabas mentions that Music/AliceCooper is the ugliest woman he's ever seen, not realizing that he was looking at a man. (He was confused by the name.)

* Inverted in the film version of ''Film/DarkShadows''. During the party at Collinwood, Barnabas mentions that Alice Cooper is the ugliest woman he's ever seen, not realizing that he was looking at a man. (He was confused by the name.)

** Theseus, who was raised in Troezen, was on his way to Athens when some workmen started catcalling him--in Athens men wore short tunics, so to them his long, princely robe looked more like a dress. Theseus got pissed and [[SuperStrength threw two grown oxen]] into the air, which apparently missed by still left them rather stunned.

* ''Fanfic/VoyagesOfTheWildSeaHorse'' has Harumi Tsukuyomi, native to the Grand Line island of [[LadyLand Femille]], is mistaken for a girl by the Kamikazse Pirates when they first meet him. Not even Ranma Saotome (a SexShifter) nor Ukyo Kuonji (herself a former {{bifauxnen}}) recognize him as a PrettyBoy at first. Indeed, Ranma's literal first thoughts on meeting Harumi are about how cute "she" is, even despite his [[LoveDodecahedron multiple existing romantic attachments]]. It turns out that Femille tradition is for all men to dress and act like women, to the point they have been literally bred to be {{bishonen}}s.

[[folder:Myths & Religion]]
* In Myth/GreekMythology, Narcissus fell in love with his own reflection. Some say that he mistook it for a beautiful woman, while others say that he recognized himself. Either way, he lay there pining after himself until he wasted away, his body turning into a flower that bears his name. This happened because he spurned the affections of a young man named Ameinias and a (female) nymph named Echo, who prayed to {{N|amesToRunAwayFromReallyFast}}emesis for revenge.
** Theseus, who was raised in Troezen, was on his way to Athens when some workmen started catcalling him--in Athens men wore short tunics, so to them his long, princely robe looked more like a dress. Theseus got pissed and [[SuperStrength threw two grown oxen]] into the air, which apparently missed by still left them rather stunned.

[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]
* Mark Briscoe refers to Wrestling/TheYoungBucks as "the hottest babes in pro wrestling".
* "He looks more like a woman than a man" was one of the reasons Wrestling/KurtAngle gave for disliking Wrestling/JeffHardy, while Hardy was the centerpiece of Immortal and made a silver Aztec sun belt styled after his face.

[[folder:Roleplay]]
* Izael from the ''Roleplay/TheGamersAlliance'' is often confused for a girl because of his looks.
* ''Roleplay/EquestriaChronicles'' has Shiloh, who looks like a filly and has been mistaken for one on multiple occasions.
* ''Roleplay/EquestrianLegends'': Beret Swirl invokes this trope to get free drinks.
* In the Roleplay wiki, one of the character profiles done is of an Androgynous ninja.

[[folder:Theatre]]
* In ''Theatre/{{Jerusalem}}'', Ginger is mistaken for a woman by the Professor, though this is only because the former has long hair and the latter is a senile and possibly crazy old man. Nobody else has any doubts about Ginger's sex, which makes sense given that Mackensie Crook doesn't look much like a woman at all.

-->'''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros3DSWiiU Gardevoir's ''3DS/Wii U'' trophy description (North America):]]''' Gardevoir is a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokemon, bearing an elegant appearance that male and female Gardevoir share.

-->'''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros3DSAndWiiU Gardevoir's ''3DS/Wii U'' trophy description (North America):]]''' Gardevoir is a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokemon, bearing an elegant appearance that male and female Gardevoir share.

-->'''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros3DSandWiiU Gardevoir's ''3DS/Wii U'' trophy description (North America):]]''' Gardevoir is a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokemon, bearing an elegant appearance that male and female Gardevoir share.

-->'''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros4 Gardevoir's ''3DS/Wii U'' trophy description (North America):]]''' Gardevoir is a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokemon, bearing an elegant appearance that male and female Gardevoir share.

-->'''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros3DSWiiU Gardevoir's ''3DS/Wii U'' trophy description (North America):]]''' Gardevoir is a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokemon, bearing an elegant appearance that male and female Gardevoir share.

* Many Franchise/{{Pokemon}} of a single species look identical whether they're male or female, which leads to this trope with species like Gardevoir that have a very feminine appearance. Lampshaded with Gardevoir's trophy descriptions in the ''Franchise/SuperSmashBros'' games and nowhere else:

-->'''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosforthe3DSandWiiU Gardevoir's ''3DS/Wii U'' trophy description (North America):]]''' Gardevoir is a Psychic/Fairy-type Pokemon, bearing an elegant appearance that male and female Gardevoir share.

* Many Franchise/{{Pokemon}} of a single species look identical whether they're male or female, which leads to this trope with species like Gardevoir that have a very feminine appearance.

* ''Fanfic/KingdomHeartsTheAntipode'': PlayedForLaughs. [[WesternAnimation/Frozen2013 The Trolls]] ''somehow'' mistake WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck for a 'human female' and [[ShipperOnDeck try to wed him to Kristoff]].

-->''WAK! I'M NOT A GIRL!''

'''Hideyoshi:''' I agree with you, ''but I'm not a girl.''

* ''WebAnimation/HazbinHotel'': Angel Dust dresses in feminine clothing, is fluffy and pink, appears to have breasts (is actually just his chest fluff), and has a higher voice than most men. In the pilot, Nifty actually confuses him for a woman, ignoring him completely while trying to find any men in the hotel.

* Nagisa Shiota from ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom''. He confused many readers into [[ViewerGenderConfusion thinking he's a girl]]. At one point it's lampshaded--the class goes swimming, and a couple girls are surprised he's in male swimwear. Becomes a plot point later when he dresses up like one to help the other girls while infiltrating a resort, at which point Karma snidely remarks that he's more convincing as a girl than as a boy. This is deconstructed when [[spoiler:it's revealed that his mother is a ControlFreak who [[WantedASonInstead wanted a daughter instead]] and forced him to adopt a more feminine appearance to invoke this]]. Upon learning this, one of the girls who had previously teased him for his appearance apologizes. [[AesopAmnesia And then immediately forces him to crossdress again for their cafe.]]

* ''VideoGame/AkaSeka'': Yui Shōsetsu, even though he is completely unaware of this and will get [[BerserkButton very pissed]] when other people mistake his gender.

* ''VideoGame/BungoToAlchemist'': Kōyō Ozaki. "''Who are you calling granny? I'm quite obviously a man!''"

* ''VideoGame/TwistedWonderland'': Epel Felmier is very [[{{Bishonen}} small and delicate-looking]], to the point where he's mistaken for a girl even though he goes to a [[OneGenderSchool school for boys]]. That the resident CampStraight Vil Schoenheit isn't misgendered while he is is very telling.

* ''VideoGame/TwistedWonderland'': Epel Felmier is very [[{{Bishonen}} small and delicate-looking]], to the point where he's mistaken for a girl even though he goes to a [[OneGenderSchool school for boys]].

* ''Franchise/MetalGear'':

* ''Webcomic/{{Beloved}}'': Lin was this way when he was a child. Ding Yi sees a picture of him and mistakes him for a girl. Wei also thought he was a girl at first glance. He was slim and pretty until high school.

* Jacob the Rag doll from ''Webcomic/{{Monsterful}}'', his long hair and shy personality make it even worse.
* Al in ''Webcomic/{{Goud}}''. At one point, Vincent isn't sure if Al is a guy or a girl but falls for him anyway.
* ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'':
** Tedd, whenever he removes his OpaqueNerdGlasses. And even when he doesn't, "[[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2003-04-29 he's just that androgynous]]" is the oldest RunningGag of EGS. Certain [[GenderBender habits of his]] don't help matters, though it's suggested that one of the reasons he does it is when he's a boy, his feminine face gets him mocked. When he's a girl, he's a [[StupidSexyFlanders hottie]].[[note]][[https://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1896 It turns out]] that a big part of why is actually that he's [[UsefulNotes/{{Transgender}} genderfluid]] (although he didn't know this terminology until recently), and sometimes identifies as female.[[/note]] At one point, he magically dyed his hair pink and went to a ''TabletopGame/MagicTheGathering'' tournament. This [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1854 drew attention]] from straight men at the tournament, although he seems to be under [[http://www.egscomics.com/index.php?id=1875 the assumption]] that anyone attracted to him is gay.
** Noah is even worse. Elliot's reaction when [[http://egscomics.com/?date=2010-03-17 meeting him]] is "Who's this...guy? I think?"

* ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' had a running gag where Gabe kept mistaking game developer John Romero for a woman (despite Tycho's repeated corrections) because of his "long, flowing hair". [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2000/02/18/ They both made this mistake at least once]].
* In ''Webcomic/{{Rascals}}'', thanks to the power of Issyvision, Skye temporarily does look like a lady. See it [[https://rascals.kemono.cafe/comic/rascals-pg-295/ here]].
* Parodied in ''Webcomic/{{Insecticomics}}'' when MoralGuardian Lady Jaye attempts to make the 'naked' robots all wear censor bars. Override, who is female but has a gender-neutral body, taunts Lady Jaye by asking how many censor bars she needs. Lady Jaye eventually puts a censor bar on her groin but not on her chest, having decided that Override is male.

* In [[http://sidekickgirl.comicgenesis.com/d/20080730.html this]] ''Webcomic/SidekickGirl'' strip, Chris looks like a tall, skinny girl, but in the next strip is [[ShirtlessScene revealed to be a young man with very long hair]].
* [[http://www.sluggy.com/daily.php?date=971007 This]] ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'' strip invokes this trope thanks to an alien race where the males look an awful lot like human females. Rather than being [[UnsettlingGenderReveal grossed out that they were drooling over a guy]], Torg and Riff keep right on staring at his breasts. "Could you jump up and down for us, mister?"
* Cale from ''Webcomic/LookingForGroup'' is often referred to as "she" by Richard when the latter is still getting to know him, even after he's well aware that Cale is male. Aside from Richard's mocking, Cale's effeminate appearance continues to be used as a RunningGag with other characters as well.
* ''Webcomic/MyLifeInBlue'': "Your mom looks like a girl. Ooo."
* ''Webcomic/LovelyLovecraft'': Iranon to the hilt. He's slender, has long flowing hair [[FlowersOfFemininity with flowers stuck in it]], and wears colorful robes that drape over one shoulder and expose the other in a feminine fashion.

* ''Webcomic/FauxPas'': Randy, who is male, once was Miss April on a calendar.

* [[spoiler:Eutropia]] of ''WebComic/{{Amazoness}}''--it's actually a plot point.
* Chovek, a minor character in ''Webcomic/{{Inhuman}}''. The fact that he's {{pink|GirlBlueBoy}} doesn't help.
* A peculiar example in ''Webcomic/TheShufflers''. Thanks to Märchen’s somewhat long hair and his portly figure, the hospital mistakes him for a pregnant woman and attempts to transfer him to the maternity ward.
* Lampshaded heavily and hilariously in ''Webcomic/ChasingTheSunset'', as Leaf is ''so'' girly that it often takes ages for someone meeting him to realize he's a guy. But then, he's an elf, so [[PrettyBoy prettiness]] is [[{{Pun}} pretty]] much par for the course.

* Meet ''Webcomic/DubiousCompany'''s [[http://dubiouscompany.com/comics/2006/05/07 Elator]]. Later on, a drunk Tiren braids his hair with [[ClingyMacGuffin magic hair ties]] that won't undo. Most characters [[http://dubiouscompany.com/comics/2010/07/27 mistake him for female]]. Marty has [[SelectiveObliviousness problems]] with this [[http://dubiouscompany.com/comics/2010/11/09 revelation]].
* ''Webcomic/UnwindersTallComics'': Dr. Minivan, after losing his hair (for science), buys a wig to hide his baldness. The wig is so long that he gets mistaken for a woman. When this happens in a public restroom, he panics and hides in a stall, and tries to figure out how to get back out of the restroom without incurring further confusion. This takes so long that he grows a beard. Problem solved!
* ''Webcomic/{{Sunstone}}'' has Alan, who is so protective of what facial hair he has not even his wedding day could part him from it. Some of the characters have a vendetta to get the man to cross dress.
* Allen from ''Webcomic/AllenTheAlien'', who would't normally be this trope, is mistaken by the aliens for a girl; RR-TWTTW somehow think he resembles his daughter.
* ''Webcomic/Life2012'' has [[http://www.cha0sden.com/Life.php?comic=274 Edward's roommate]] [[http://www.cha0sden.com/Life.php?comic=275 Lex]].
-->'''Lex:''' And yes, I am a guy.
* Lampshaded in ''Webcomic/MMBN7TheWorldTournament'', were Sean mistakes Viddy Narcy as a woman at first before their match.
* ''Webcomic/SequentialArt'': Art's neighbor, Roger Lapin, to the extent that he basically looks ''exactly'' like [[Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit Jessica Rabbit]], right down to the ImpossibleHourglassFigure and [[BuxomBeautyStandard generous bustline]]. Considering that Roger's very anatomy is female, as opposed to just having feminine facial features, it isn't clear whether he just looks like a woman or whether he actually is transgender. His wife, Jessica, is an inversion since she looks like a stereotypical overweight, bearded biker dude.

* ''Webcomic/CursedPrincessClub'': Prince Jamie of the Pastel Kingdom is so beautiful that on first meeting him (or seeing his royal portrait), people think he's another Princess. To be fair, he does have gorgeous hot-pink hair, wide magenta eyes, long lashes, flawless skin, a willowy frame, and he does exude literal sparkles wherever he goes.
* ''Blog/AskTheFamous8'': Percy looks more feminine compared to his peers, as he has long hair which he ties into a bun and a noticeable bust. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]], as he is transgender and currently in the process of transitioning.

* Phase, in the ''Literature/WhateleyUniverse'', looks and sounds so girly that he's given up and dresses in mannish girl's clothes that fit him, while he tries to find a way to change himself back to a manly guy. Even in pants and heavy coat, he still gets tabbed as a girl, much to his disgust.

* An NHL blogger decided to [[http://thecanafornians.com/?p=806 list hockey players]] who she felt [[CelebrityResemblance looked like]] Creator/TildaSwinton.

* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty'':
** Raiden. Like Rune, he got patted down, but in... er, [[CrotchGrabSexCheck a different area]]. By the ''US President''. It doesn't help that we're so used to visual representation of the male body as having no hips (they do, just not as pronounced as women) that Raiden is relentlessly mocked because of the figure-enhancing suit he wears. ("Hips Don't Lie" is a minor meme for male character models that look like they're just very flat women.)

* Tamamo-no-Mae from ''VideoGame/Onmyoji2016'', who's so feminine despite being an adult man that he's even voiced by a woman. Later skins however tone this down until he's just a {{Bishonen}}, and then comes a skin for his SP form where even his voice actor is replaced by a male one, firmly averting this trope.
* ''VideoGame/PapersPlease'' has some male entrants whose heads look like women's heads. You have to strip search them to find whether or not the passport's stated biological sex is true or not in order to determine whether to let them in or to arrest them.
* Haukau from ''VideoGame/TheTaleOfFood'' who also crossdresses, is an IdolSinger, could apparently pass for an old man's long-lost daughter and briefly worked as the "mistress" of a teahouse. Then he gets a skin that [[AvertedTrope shatters this utterly]].
* ''VideoGame/TalesOfVesperia'' has a RunningGag of various [=NPCs=] being surprised that [[TheHero Yuri]] [[BloodKnight Lowell]] is a guy. Considering [[https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/thebiogateroleplay/images/b/be/Yurilowell.png/revision/latest?cb=20120418024004 this]] is how he looks, it's not very surprising. What ''is'' surprising is that a) not many major characters comment on it and b) Yuri just flat out...doesn't care.
* In ''Castle Chase'', Monica assumes that the librarian [[GenderBlenderName Clare]] is female because of "her" [[LongHairIsFeminine long blond hair]] and flowing robes. She learns otherwise only in Clare's ending where Clare reveals to her that not only is he a man but the reason he asked her to [[FetchQuest fetch]] him various items was that he wanted to use them to make a gift of affection for her.
* In ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'', Amane Nishiki is confused by a woman in multiple occasions. Just ask Bang, Hazama, Litchi, among others.
--> '''Kagura:''' (After checking him out) ''Not another dude...''
* Many Franchise/{{Pokemon}} of a single species look identical whether they're male or female, which leads to this trope with species like Gardevoir that have a very feminine appearance.
** Gothitelle, a pokemon that looks like a ElegantGothicLolita, has a 25% to be male.
** Taken even farther with feminine [[StarterMon starters]] like Delphox and Primarina (whose designs are based on witches and mermaids respectively), who have an 80% chance of being male due to an obsolete tradition intended to [[ObviousRulePatch keep people from cheesing the game by breeding a bunch of starters]].
* Hajime of ''VideoGame/EnsembleStars'', who sports a pastel blue bob, a gentle and meek personality, and some rather feminine hobbies such as tea and herb sachets, not to mention a knack for laundry. As a result many characters refer to him as a girl, calling him a younger sister or ideal wife. However, he always insists that he's a boy and actually doesn't like being mistaken this way - he'd like to cut his hair much shorter, but his current girly style suits the youthful theme of his idol unit, so everyone freaked out and begged him not to.
** This also happens in-universe to Kaoru - the first time he sees Souma, he mistakes him for a [[YamatoNadeshiko 'beautiful, black-haired beauty.']] As soon as Souma starts talking he realises his mistake, [[UnsettlingGenderReveal to his embarrassment]], but Souma understands neither why Kaoru called out to him now why he's now trying to ignore him, which rather sets their relationship off on the wrong foot. Kaoru also seems especially preoccupied by his girly looks even after this, to HoYay levels:
--->''Oh, geez. If you were a girl, I'd have said, "I'm going to shut that mouth which shouts abusive language", [[ShutUpKiss and given her a kiss~]] You've got long hair and seem like a girl, but you're a guy, after all~ I don't swing that way.''
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity'': Discussed by the band [[GlamRock Lovefist]]:
--> Is it true you like our curls\\
Do you think we look like girls?
%%Is this part of the Grand Theft Auto example? There was no bullet point. ---Arguably with some related tropes thrown in, as he secretly wears Mercedes' bra...
* Alphinaud in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' has a soft looking face (since he's a teenager) and a pretty long ponytail. Several people mistake him for his twin sister, Alisaie, who looks almost identical to him save for her red lips and a red bow in her ponytail. The inverse of the trope happens where Alisaie gets confused with her brother after she is told how rugged she looks. This completely sets her off as she tears [[spoiler: Estinien]] a new one for mistaking her for her brother.
* Shiron in ''VideoGame/AzureStrikerGunvolt3'' looks and sounds like a girl, but is in fact actually a boy, which makes for a good contrast with his obsession with manliness. He understandably becomes pissed off when ZedΩ flirts with him and mistakes him for a girl in Epilogue ATEMS.

* ''WesternAnimation/FostersHomeForImaginaryFriends'': "[[Recap/FostersHomeForImaginaryFriendsS1E8SeeingRedPhoneHome Seeing Red]]" features a trio of unicorns named Frank, Joe, and Phil, who are all male, but all look very feminine. [[BerserkButton They don't like being called "Girly" and beat up anyone who does so]]. Bloo knows this, which is why he tricks Red, Terrence's imaginary friend, into doing it.

* ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'':
** On an early (as in before it was cancelled and UnCancelled) episode, the gang are discussing which celebrities they would have sex with if they had the chance. Quagmire says [[Music/{{Hanson}} Taylor Hanson]], and suffers a minor breakdown once he's told Hanson is a man.
--->'''Quagmire:''' But I have all these magazines! ...''Oh God!''
** Another episode has Quagmire being asked which celebrity he'd have sex with, [[GayBravado and was given a choice between two men]]. He chooses Creator/JohnnyDepp, because "he kind of looks like a chick, I guess".
* The opening theme for ''WesternAnimation/PepperAnn'' has an unidentified character ask if Pepper Ann is that girl she's always seeing everywhere, upon which Milo, in his very deep and laid-back voice, then says, "No, that's me."
* In the ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'' episode "Bossy Boots", Squidward's new uniform results in a nearby fish mistaking him for a lady.
** In "One Krabs Trash", Mr. Krabs says wearing the soda drink hat makes [=SpongeBob=] look like a girl, with the latter taking it as a compliment.
** "Keep Bikini Bottom Beautiful" has Squidward's night shirt that everyone mistakes for a dress, complete with the sanitation police referring to him as "ma'am".
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': Homer doesn’t even remotely resemble a girl, yet in one episode he still gets mistaken for one. After he gets kicked out of Moe’s Tavern, he goes to a lesbian bar. After he complains about the bar’s lack of a fire exit, [[ScrewThisImOutOfHere he leaves.]] A nearby woman asks, “What was her problem?”

* ''VideoGame/EldenRing'': The demigod Miquella looks very feminine due to his RapunzelHair and being cursed with eternal childhood, although the game never questions that he's a guy.[[spoiler: His alter ego St. Trina, on the other hand, was subject to constant arguments over his gender as nobody could agree if Trina was a long-haired boy or a young woman with a particularly flat chest.]]