Gender

Read the following sentences.

     1.   The little boy was crying

     2.   The little girl jumped up at once.

     3.   I looked in the cupboard

     4.   My friend is very helpful.

Types of Gender

1) Masculine Gender:
  • The names of all male persons or animals are said to be of the Masculine Gender.
  • Example:  man, actor, uncle, hero, king, lion etc.
  • The Noun ‘boy’ in the first sentence is the name of a male. It is therefore, said to be of the Masculine Gender.
2)Feminine Gender:
  • The names of all female persons or animals are said to be of the Feminine Gender.
  • Example: woman, aunt, daughter, actress, queen, lioness etc.
  • The Noun ‘girl’ in the second sentence is the name of a female. It is, therefore, said to be of the Feminine Gender.

3)Neuter Gender:

  • Things without life cannot be distinguished either as male or female; hence the names of such things are said to be of the Neuter Gender.
  • Example: house, knife, tree, chair, table, book, ball etc.
  •  The Noun ‘cupboard’ in the third sentence is the name of a thing without life. It is, therefore, said to be of the Neuter Gender.
  •  Neuter means neither masculine nor feminine.

 4)Common Gender:

  • Names that can be used for both males and females are said to be of the Common Gender.
  • Example: child, parent, student etc.
  • The Noun ‘friend’ in the fourth sentence may mean either a male friend or a female friend. It is, therefore, said to be of Common Gender.

 So, there are four types of Genders.

     1.   Masculine Gender

     2.   Feminine Gender

     3.   Neuter Gender

     4.   Common Gender

 Masculine Noun to Feminine Noun

  • By adding ‘ess’ to the Masculine

Masculine

Feminine

Lion

Lioness

Heir

Heiress

Priest

Priestess

Author

Authoress

Prince

Princess

Count

Countess

Poet

Poetess

Host

Hostess

Shepherd

Shepherdess

Giant

Giantess
  • Sometimes the form is slightly changed before ‘ess’ is added

Masculine

Feminine

God

Goddess

Master

Mistress

Songster

Songstress

Hunter

Huntress

Benefactor

Benefactress

Emperor

Empress

Governor

Governess

Waiter

Waitress

Actor

Actress

Tiger

Tigress

Duke

Duchess

Enchanter

Enchantress
  •  By a Different Word 

Masculine

Feminine

King

Queen

Brother

Sister

Drake

Duck

Father

Mother

Uncle

Aunt

Horse

Mare

Son

Daughter

Man

Woman

Monk

Nun

Sir

Madam

Boy

Girl

Bull

Cow

Nephew

Niece

Gander

Geese

Feminine of Compound Nouns

Masculine

Feminine

Pea-cock

Pea-hen

He-goat

She-goat

Step-father

Step-mother

Fisher-man

Fisher-woman

Milk-man

Milk-maid

Gentleman

Gentlewoman

Washer-man

Washer-woman

Landlord

Landlady

Step-son

Step-daughter

Man-servant

Maid-servant

Grand-father

Grand-mother

Salesman

Saleswoman
  • Some more examples

Masculine

Feminine

Hero

Heroine

Lad

Lass

Sir

Madam

Widower

Widow

Bridegroom

Bride

Mr.

Mrs.

Note:

1.   The Pronoun ‘he’ is used for Singular Masculine Noun, ‘she’ is used for Singular Feminine Noun, and ‘it’ is used for Singular Neuter Noun.

2.   The Pronouns ‘they’ and ‘them’ may be used for Masculine, Feminine or Neuter.


Practice Exercise

Q1. Rewrite the following sentences, using Nouns and Pronouns of the opposite Gender:

1.The man went to the dining hall. He ate his dinner.

Sol.

__________________________________

 2.His brother has a car.

Sol.

___________________________________

3.His brother is a hero.

Sol.

____________________________________

4.The king went to the palace.

Sol.

_____________________________________

 5.The girls have been to the science museum.

Sol.

______________________________________

 6.He is the son of a washer-man.

Sol.

______________________________________

7.My father is a banker. He works in this bank.

Sol.

_______________________________________

8.Her husband treated him badly.

Sol.

_______________________________________

9.His grandmother lost her purse.

Sol.

________________________________________

Q2. Give the Feminine of:

Widower

_____________________

Bridegroom

_____________________

Grand-father

_____________________

Salesman

_____________________

Dog

_____________________

Gander

_____________________

God

_____________________

Master

_____________________

Songster

_____________________

Hunter

_____________________

Benefactor

_____________________

Emperor

_____________________

Governor

_____________________

Waiter

_____________________

Actor

_____________________

Tiger

_____________________