Questions tagged [feminine]
The feminine tag has no usage guidance.
17
questions
0
votes
0answers
33 views
Is the -ie suffix commonly associated with femininity?
Is it valid to assume that the -ie suffix is commonly associated with femininity? Say, we take a word like owl and add the suffix, so we get owlie. Would a person whose native language is English be ...
0
votes
3answers
125 views
Pair like man/woman but clearly for sex not gender [closed]
If I want to distinguish social (or linguistic) gender and biological sex in a text, is there any polar pair of terms that clearly refers to organisms with a specific sex and not (also) to persons ...
3
votes
1answer
323 views
Lavatory — US terms used in the 1950s
I am trying to find out what would be natural terms to refer to the lavatory in the US in the 1950s. I am specifically interested in how a woman who was a teenager at that time in a poor working class ...
7
votes
3answers
175 views
Do there exist male names that derive from female names in English?
I've seen a lot of female names that are simply derivatives of male names, mostly of biblical origin:
Michaela, Michelle from Michael, Michel
Joan, Joanna, Joanne, Jane, Jean from John, Jean
...
0
votes
1answer
1k views
When I'm referencing a undefined person, when should I use “she” or “he”? [duplicate]
This is something I realized in some text I read (books and articles), I don't identify it when speaking to people. When a pronoun is used replacing an undefined person sometimes "he" is used (I would ...
4
votes
0answers
596 views
Is there one word that means female car enthusiast? [closed]
There are words like gear head, speedophile, car nut etc. that are all gender neutral, however, I am creating a support group or a common interest linkup for women who have a passion for cars.
I am ...
-1
votes
1answer
380 views
What's the appropiate pronoun for a program named after a woman? [closed]
In a technical document introducing an operating system named after a famous woman, I have to refer to the OS itself. I've consistently used "it/its" but some sentences sound a little weird.
Is it ...
1
vote
0answers
16 views
Genders for arbitrary occupations [duplicate]
Let's say I have a sentence similar to
When a scientist publishes results, she must be careful to not enter the incorrect data.
However, I am confused as to what I should use in place of the "she"...
0
votes
1answer
136 views
What is the future for the Word *“Womyn”*? [closed]
The Word "womyn" has an interesting and debated history. It has become ever more pertinent since it's creation. My question is: Does "womyn" have a future?
4
votes
4answers
6k views
Is “take a leak” considered only masculine or is it okay if women use it too?
And if it can also be used by women, I still feel vulgar using it.
5
votes
6answers
4k views
“Was it a girl?” or “Was that a girl?”
Here's a conversation.
"I saw a salesperson there"
"Was it a girl?"
Is it OK to use "it" when you refer to the salesperson?
Or should you use "that" instead ...
9
votes
2answers
2k views
Is “woman” really interchangable with “female” as an adjective?
I listen to BBC Radio 4 a fair bit. They pretty much always use "woman" as opposed to "female" - like "a woman pilot".
To me this just sounds completely wrong, and most stuff I can find online about ...
3
votes
1answer
2k views
Female equivalent for “wet dreams”? [closed]
As I understand, the term wet dreams applies only to masculine gender? Then, unless it's unisex in nature, is there a specific term applicable to feminine gender?
2
votes
3answers
36k views
Female equivalent of “bachelor”? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What is the word for an unmarried female?
What is the word for an unmarried female?
The above closed question is unanswered as bachelorette implies both unmarried and divorced/...
2
votes
4answers
25k views
Origin of 'fairer sex'
I've seen the term 'the fairer sex' being used in a number of areas to refer to females. How did they get that title?
What does 'fairer' refer to in this case?
1
vote
0answers
101 views
When to use the feminine form when referring to a person? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Tendency of using pronouns 'she/her' when talking about a random person
I was never interested in grammar and English in school. Now that I am older, I am finding it ...
3
votes
1answer
491 views
Which words of foreign origin kept a distinctive feminine?
The feminine of confidant is confidante, probably due to the French origin of the word (confident, whose feminine is confidente). I wonder which other words of foreign origin commonly used in English ...
