GENDER:
Living beingsare of either the male or the female sex. Now compare the following pairs of
Words:
Boy, girl
Man, woman
Husband, wife
Lion, lioness
Here the first word of each pair is the name of a male animal. The second word of each pair is the name of a female animal. A noun that denotes a male animal is said to be of the masculine gender.
A noun that denotes a female animal is said to be of the feminine gender.
A noun that denotes either a male or a female is said to be of the common gender. Examples
are: parent, child, friend, servant, thief, enemy, cousin, student, baby, teacher, writer etc.
A noun that denotes a thing that is neither male nor female is said to be of the neuter gender. Examples are: book, pen, room, house, tree etc.
It is thus seen that in modern English, the gender of a noun is entirely a matter of sex or the absence of it. It has nothing to do with the form of a noun, which determines its gender in many other languages.
Note thatinanimate objects are often personified, that is, spoken of as if they were living beings. We then regard them as males or females. The masculine gender is often applied to lifeless objects known for strength or violence. Examples are: sun, summer, winter, time, death etc.
The feminine gender is often applied to lifeless objects known for beauty or gracefulness.
Examples are: moon, earth, spring, autumn, nature, liberty, justice, peace, mercy, hope etc.
How to Form the Feminine Gender of some Nouns:
There are three ways of forming the feminine gender:
1) By using an entirely different word:
Bachelor (masculine) / spinster or maid (feminine)
Boy / girl
Man / woman
Husband / wife
Father / mother
Brother / sister
Son / daughter
Horse / mare
Monk / nun
Buck / doe
King / queen
Cock / hen
Dog / bitch
Drake / duck
Earl / countess
Gander / geese
Gentleman / lady
Nephew / niece
Uncle / aunt
2) By adding a syllable (-ess, -ine, -trix etc) to the masculine gender:
Author (masculine) / authoress (feminine)
Baron / baroness
Count / countess
Giant / giantess
Heir / heiress
Host / hostess
Lion / lioness
Mayor / mayoress
Poet / poetess
Priest / priestess
In the following -ess is added after dropping the vowel of the masculine ending:
Actor (masculine) / actress (feminine)
Enchanter / enchantress
Duke / duchess
Emperor / empress
Prince / princess
Tiger / tigress
Waiter / waitress
Master / mistress
Sorcerer / sorceress
3) By placing a word before or after:
Grandfather / grandmother
Manservant / maidservant
Landlord / landlady
Peacock / peahen
Salesman / saleswoman
Washerman / washerwoman
NB:
A ‘mayor’ can be a man or a woman. In British English, a ‘mayoress’ is the wife of a male
mayor.
Some words ending in -ess are no longer used. Examples are: ‘authoress’ and ‘poetess’. Author and poet are now used for both men and women. The words ‘steward’ and ‘stewardess’ are being replaced by other terms like ‘flight attendant’. Note that a flight attendant can be a man or a woman.
Post a Comment