What is women's physique?

In one line

Women's physique is a women's division in which competitors stand barefoot and use poses to show muscle that is bigger and sharper than in figure but less built than in women's bodybuilding.

What is women's physique?
The women's division that flexes barefoot
Among women's divisions in swimsuits, there is one where competitors stand barefoot, without heels, raise their arms and flex their muscles. That division is women's physique. Its competitors build more muscle than in bikini or figure, yet it is also different from women's bodybuilding.
In short
Showing built muscle through poses
Women's physique is a women's division in which competitors use flexing poses to show the shape, size and sharpness of muscle built by training. The muscle is bigger and sharper than in figure. Even so, muscle built to the level of women's bodybuilding is not what it looks for.
When and why it began
A division for a less bulky muscular body
The International Fitness and Bodybuilding Federation (IFBB) recognized women's physique as an official division in 2012. Its rules introduce it as a division for women who, unlike former women's bodybuilders, want a less muscular but athletic, good-looking body. It is one of several women's divisions that appeared one after another in the 2010s.
Attire
A two-piece swimsuit, and bare feet
Competitors (people who enter the show) wear a two-piece swimsuit and stand barefoot. The bottom covers at least half of the buttocks, and string styles are not allowed. During judging, the hair is worn up off the shoulders so it does not hide the back and shoulder muscles.
Mandatory poses
Arms raised, hands open, muscles flexed
Competitors perform the 'mandatory poses' set by the organization, in order. A typical one has both arms raised to shoulder height and bent, with hands open, flexing the arm muscles. The IFBB uses 4 poses; the US amateur body NPC and the professional IFBB Pro League use 5, adding an abs-and-thighs pose.
Posing routine
Linking poses to music of one's choice
In NPC and IFBB Pro League finals, competitors link poses together to music they choose, for no more than 1 to 2 minutes. This is called a 'posing routine'. IFBB world-level finals have no individual routine; competitors are compared in 'quarter turns', turning a quarter (1/4) of a circle at a time, and in mandatory poses.
What judges look for
Shape, density, definition and balance
Judges scan from head to toe and compare the shape of the muscles, how full they look (density) and how sharp their borders are (definition). They also check whether the top and bottom, and left and right, are evenly developed. IFBB rules add femininity and a confident stage presence to the overall picture.
How it differs from figure
Fuller muscle and sharper borders
When the border between two muscles shows like a groove, it is called 'separation'. NPC rules want women's physique to show fuller muscle and clearer separation than figure, and say a small amount of fine lines on the muscle surface (striations) is acceptable. In figure, visible striations are marked down.
A common misconception
Is it the same as women's bodybuilding?
No. IFBB rules tell judges to mark down the muscle, veins and very dry, hard look seen in women's bodybuilding. NPC rules also do not want an overly striated body. The NPC and the IFBB Pro League hold women's bodybuilding as a separate division.
Summary
Big and sharp, but not bodybuilding-level muscle
Women's physique is a women's division in which competitors stand barefoot and use mandatory poses to show muscle that is bigger and sharper than in figure. Though the names look similar, it is a different division from women's bodybuilding, and muscle at that level is marked down. Related terms: mandatory poses, figure division, bodybuilding division.