Questions tagged [gender]
Questions regarding the grammatical gender of English words.
-4
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2answers
116 views
Can the epicene personal pronoun be used regardless of semantic gender of the word?
Can the epicene personal pronoun be used regardless of semantic gender of the word?
In other words, for any word with semantic gender (i.e. lion, lioness, boy, girl, man, woman, cow, bull, regardless ...
1
vote
2answers
48 views
How can one include all people in one's written and spoken language irrespective of one's gender identity(s)? [closed]
I am totally in favour of including non-binary folks in my written and spoken speech, though I'm not sure exactly how I go about doing it competently without sounding like I am trying to avoid ...
0
votes
3answers
74 views
Can “old man” be used by females to address unrelated older men?
I'm a fan-translator, translating from Oriental languages to English, and I've been told to translate "uncle" to "old man", since a direct translation would imply a familial relation where there was ...
1
vote
1answer
100 views
Feminine form of “son” when used as term of endearment [duplicate]
It seems natural and appropriate for an older man to call a non-relative boy/young man “son” to convey endearment. Although I’m not sure, I think it’s unofficially reserved for men’s use only (the ...
0
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1answer
32 views
He, she, it with animals [closed]
When I want to write the story about little puppy, I have found on the street, should I use it or other gender?
0
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1answer
35 views
how to ignore gender nicely in english? can i make the sentence plural? [duplicate]
why is this possible to replace:
someone removed his/her with someone removed their
can I also change:
The user clicks on the button. He/She then sees.. with
The user clicks on the button. They ...
11
votes
3answers
937 views
Debutante in a sporting context?
The Collins English Dictionary defines a "debutant" as
"a person who is making a first appearance in a particular capacity, such as a sportsperson playing in a first game for a team"
As the ...
1
vote
2answers
145 views
What causes the predominantly female gendering of objects?
In English, objects are not generally gendered, as we have neutral pronouns used specifically for that purpose. I've noticed that when gendered pronouns are used for non-gendered objects, though, ...
2
votes
1answer
319 views
Specifying Pronouns as He/Him;She/Her;They/Them
It is becoming more common for people to explicitly state the pronouns to be used in addressing themselves: he/him, she/her, or they/them. For example, a name tag for a conference might read:
Cory ...
-1
votes
1answer
132 views
How to say “unisex for children” in english language (without sounding weird) [closed]
I'm trying to find the professional wording that describes "unisex" (male + female) in the children fashion industry. It seems that most fashion shops simply name this "children" or "kids", avoiding ...
0
votes
1answer
75 views
Gender of word “Unity”
I'm writing an article in Polish about game engine named "Unity". I constructed the following sentence:
Unity jest bardzo jednolita, jeśli chodzi o encje i komponenty.
This translates more or less ...
8
votes
4answers
884 views
Does the term “Brotherhood” imply that all members are males?
I'm writing a story that has a secret society or gang called "The Brotherhood", and I want to know if this term implies that all members are males (because of the term "Brother").
Would this name ...
1
vote
3answers
813 views
Is it correct to apply “Housewife” term for an unmarried woman who does house-chores?
I would like to know what is the appropriate label to describe a young woman/girl who is unmarried, stays in her parents' home, does the house chores, and has no income. She is not also looking for a ...
0
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0answers
143 views
Plural for honorific Mx.?
What is the plural for gender neutral honorific Mx?
No dictionary entry or web search turned-up an answer
50
votes
9answers
20k views
How do you say “Come on, man” to a woman?
I've heard people saying phrases like down below.
"That's not cool, man"
"Dude, look at this"
"Hey, calm down, bro"
But these words are supposed to be said to a male person. (I could be ...
3
votes
2answers
3k views
When did the word “guys” become popular as a gender-neutral word?
It's normal nowadays to walk into a room (men and women, boys and girls etc) and go, "Hey guys!". Has this always been the case, or what?
2
votes
3answers
137 views
How to translate Portuguese demonyms containing gender?
I can say "Brazilian company" (empresa brasileira, in Portuguese) for a company in Brazil. If the company resides in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais, in Portuguese we say "empresa mineira", or for ...
1
vote
1answer
3k views
Is there a Male suffix equivalent to -et/-ette?
I wanted to add a suffix to crone and damsel that would make them masculine without resorting to a male equivalent word, (that's a different question.)
We have the male-to-female conversion example ...
0
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1answer
2k views
Feminine form of “god king/emperor”
I'm trying to figure out what the correct feminine forms of "god king" and "god emperor" are. Do I just replace "king" and "emperor" with their feminine equivalents (i.e. "god queen" and "god empress")...
-1
votes
1answer
4k views
Gender neutral noun for brotherhood / sisterhood? [duplicate]
Example 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_White_Brotherhood
Example 2: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brotherhood_of_Eternal_Love
http://www.thesaurus.com/browse/brotherhood?s=t
Any other ...
0
votes
2answers
787 views
Is there a female equivalent of “prince” in the sense of “sovereign”? [closed]
A "prince" could mean heir to the throne, but I'm speaking of "prince" in the same way that Machiavelli did: as a ruler of a princedom.
1) Is there a word for a female ruler of a princedom? Certainly ...
4
votes
5answers
6k views
Mr. and Mrs. Homer Simpson - Using husband's first/last name for wife?
I originally heard this in an old episode of the Simpsons, where Apu refers to Marge as "Mrs. Homer Simpson". I've also noticed something similar in the movie "The Wedding Singer" where the titular ...
0
votes
3answers
7k views
Is “sweetheart” gender-specific? [closed]
I'm not a native speaker, but at least here in California, it seems that "sweetheart" refers predominantly to women.
How customary is for a woman to call man "sweetheart"?
4
votes
1answer
808 views
Does the archaic prefix wer/wep have modern descendants?
From what I’ve read on this site and elsewhere, the root “man” was originally sex-neutral; the sex-specific terms were “wifman” (which later became “woman”) and either “werman” or “wepman”. The male-...
0
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0answers
93 views
Linguistic gender detection
Suppose someone whom I don't know writes me an email. I want to know whether he/she is male or female. The name of the person is not informative - it can be a name of both men and women. I do not want ...
-1
votes
2answers
559 views
Pronouns and Gender Bias // Pronoun and Antecedent Agreement [duplicate]
I understand pronouns and their antecedents must agree (a singular pronoun must have a singular antecedent, and a plural pronoun must have a plural antecedent). However, I can not find an elegant ...
0
votes
2answers
131 views
What is correct? If Bob was a girl (he / she) would run [closed]
The gender of the subject is masculine but the situation is that the subject is feminine. What should the pronoun be?
2
votes
3answers
2k views
What should I use: “hero” or “heroine”? [duplicate]
I want to know, can I use hero in this sentence to refer to someone who is female? Does it make sense?
Mom you are my hero.
Or is it better to say
Mom you are my heroine.
2
votes
3answers
394 views
Is “to scold” gender-specific?
The following meanings for the word "scold" are given in Oxford Dictionaries:
a woman who nags or grumbles constantly.
remonstrate with or rebuke (someone) angrily.
So, the first one is a ...
2
votes
2answers
107 views
Which pronoun should be used to refer to“young figure”: “it” or “her”?
In my writing group, one man wrote this sentence in an except we critiqued:
John stood for a moment and watched the lithe, young figure make her way down the street.
I suggested it should read "...
3
votes
1answer
123 views
White Women's T-shirt vs Women's White T-shirt
Which way of describing a women's t-shirt is grammatically correct out of the following two descriptions? 'A white women's t-shirt featuring a flowery design.' or 'A women's white t-shirt featuring a ...
4
votes
2answers
3k views
Is “handsome” associated with masculinity and “pretty” associated with femininity? [duplicate]
TL;DR— See title:
Are the attributes in “handsome girl” and “pretty boy” perfectly interchangeable?
Is there an implicit, gender-specific connotation in “handsome” (♂) and “pretty” (♀)?
This video ...
46
votes
4answers
6k views
Usage and origin of “sister” in expressions like “sister company, sister ship, sister site” etc
The term sister is often used figuratively to refer, for instance, to a “sister company” for a company within the same group, or to a “sister site” for sites that belong to the same family. This ...
2
votes
2answers
99 views
Why does Joseph Addison use 'her' to refer to 'soul'?
I’m reading an article by Joseph Addison, The Tatler #108, dated December 17, 1709. He says:
The finest authors of antiquity have taken him on the more
advantageous side. They cultivate the ...
1
vote
1answer
266 views
Is it appropriate to substitute actor for actress retroactively? [closed]
The Wikipedia entry for actor refers to a style guide that advocates a preference of actor over actress:
"When the Observer and the Guardian published their new joint style guide in 2010, it stated ...
1
vote
1answer
342 views
How to refer to males and females in a trans-positive world? [closed]
I have a presentation coming up with a big client. One of the executives I'm presenting to is a transgender person. For context, I'm in sales and marketing - I make TV commercials.
In the meeting I ...
2
votes
3answers
3k views
A word for both Gentleman and Lady
Since one can use singular they to avoid sexism in a way or another, I got stuck trying to figure if there is a polite word meaning something like "a group of both Ladies and Gentlemen" that could be ...
0
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1answer
1k views
Why is it common in English to address animals as “it”?
Why is it common in English to address animals as "it"?
It's not an inanimate or abstract object, they have a gender and they're alive.
A chair, idea, tree, rock, etc are an "it", but why does ...
-1
votes
0answers
32 views
Switch between feminine and masculine personal pronouns in texts [duplicate]
Sometimes I come across English texts where in my opinion for no reason suddenly the pronoun changes from masculine to feminine, or one gender is used for no particular reason.
For example in the ...
4
votes
1answer
12k views
Why are ships always female? [duplicate]
I was reading wikipedia about a ship and it it's always refered as female. Is it unique to ships?
I've learn in school that words in english does not have a sex, you can call a cats and dogs as "it".
1
vote
1answer
101 views
Translating his/her when the original language is genderless [duplicate]
I'm translating a course manual but I'm struggling with something. The manual could be read by a man or a woman.
In my own language, he or she or it doesn't exist, so I'm not sure how to make my ...
2
votes
2answers
526 views
How to ask about a person's child when not knowing the gender? [closed]
I know there are a few questions like this, but I have always had trouble remembering whether or not a person's child is a boy or girl. When I meet them again, it sounds awkward and/or brash to say "...
35
votes
3answers
8k views
What does “Mrs” mean when used with a man's name?
As far as I know, the abbreviation "Mrs" is applicable only to women.
Though, when translating an article from an old British paper I found this sentence about marriages:
On the 2nd March, at the ...
1
vote
1answer
930 views
In poetry, what can I use to refer to someone without gender?
I am translating a poem from Korean. The poet is deliberately avoiding a gender reference (or, deeming it unnecessary) by using a neutral impersonal pronoun. In Korean there are generally few inbuilt ...
1
vote
0answers
446 views
How do I address a letter when I do not know the name or gender of the person I am writing to? [duplicate]
If I write a letter to someone I have not written to before, I do my best to discover their name and use the appropriate title and their surname.
I recently needed to write to the administration ...
12
votes
2answers
4k views
Is a male fox widely called a “dog fox”?
Someone on the BBC lunchtime news today referred to a dog fox.
The word dog is both generic and applied to both sexes, as well as being used to describe a male. Only context reveals whether a person ...
0
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0answers
264 views
How to address a person whose gender is not known [duplicate]
I want to write a formal letter. I know the name of address but do not the gender. How should I address him/her?
-1
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1answer
309 views
CAN WE SAY THAT SHE IS A MAN IN “She is a man of character.” [closed]
I'd like to express the full sentence: She looks quite thin, but in fact she is a man of character. Can we apply the expression a man of character when a woman has a strong character?
2
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1answer
423 views
Referring to unknown gender as “she” [duplicate]
In what cases is it appropriate to refer to unknown gender as she?
0
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4answers
1k views
Gender in “Sun won't show its/his/her face” nowadays
The question concerns the usage of possessive pronouns in phrases like:
Sun won't show its/his/her face much today.
I saw this sentence using her in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and ...
