What is Gender ?
A) Read the following sentences.
The little boy was crying.
He is my cousin.
My brother is a doctor.
Ravi saw him this morning.
My uncle lives in Australia.
In
the above sentences the words ‘Boy’, ‘he’, ‘brother’, ‘Ravi’, ‘him’ and
‘uncle’ stand for a male (boy). They are therefore, said to be 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.
B) Read the following sentences.
Dia is a very pretty girl.
She looks sad.
Riya is my sister
My mother cooks well.
My aunt loves her.
In the above sentences the words ‘Dia’, ‘girl’, ‘she’, ‘Riya’ ‘sister’, ‘mother’, ‘aunt’ and ‘her’ stand for a female (girl).
The
names of all female persons or animals are said to be of the Feminine
Gender. Example: woman, aunt, daughter, actress, queen, lioness etc.
c) Read the following sentences.
This is a chair. It is made of wood.
My house is big.
Give me the book.
The tree fell down.
I need a pencil.
In the above sentences the words ‘chair’, ‘it’, ‘house’, ‘book’, ‘tree’ and ‘pencil’ stand for places and things.
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.
Important Points:
1. The pronouns ‘I’, ‘me’, ‘you’, ‘we’, ‘us’ can be either Masculine or Feminine.
2.
The Pronoun ‘he’ is used for Singular Masculine Noun, ‘she’ is used for
Singular Feminine Noun, and ‘it’ is used for Singular Neuter Noun.
3. The pronouns ‘they’ and ‘them’ may be Masculine, Feminine or Neuter.
Example:
The boys are in the class. Ask them if they want to go out to play. (Masculine)
The girls have just arrived. Ask them if they want something to eat. (Feminine)
Here are some books lying on the table. They have many beautiful poems in them. (Neuter)
Here are list of Masculine and Feminine
|
Masculine |
Feminine |
|
boy |
girl |
|
god |
goddess |
|
brother |
sister |
|
peacock |
peahen |
|
bull |
cow |
|
fox |
vixen |
|
emperor |
empress |
|
father |
mother |
|
gentleman |
lady |
|
horse |
mare |
|
sir |
madam |
|
husband |
wife |
|
policeman |
policewoman |
|
postman |
postwoman |
|
bridegroom |
bride |
|
king |
queen |
|
lion |
lioness |
|
man |
woman |
|
grandfather |
grandmother |
|
grandson |
granddaughter |
|
nephew |
niece |
|
prince |
princess |
|
shepherd |
shepherdess |
|
son |
daughter |
|
landlord |
landlady |
|
male |
female |
|
tiger |
tigress |
|
uncle |
aunt |
|
actor |
actress |
Practice Exercise
QA)Write the feminine form of the following:
boy ____________________
god ____________________
brother _________________
peacock ________________
bull ___________________
fox ___________________
emperor _______________
father _________________
gentleman _____________
horse _________________
sir ___________________
husband ______________
policeman ____________
postman ______________
bridegroom ___________
QB) Write the feminine form of the following:
bridegroom ______________
king ____________________
lion ____________________
man ____________________
grandfather ______________
grandson ________________
nephew _________________
prince ___________________
shepherd _______________
son ___________________
landlord ________________
male ___________________
tiger __________________
uncle __________________
actor __________________
QC) Rewrite the following sentences, changing the underlined noun from Masculine to Feminine.
1. My husband is a doctor.
_______________________________________________
2. My father is a good teacher.
_______________________________________________
3. The boy has no friend.
_______________________________________________
4. My nephew sings very well.
_______________________________________________
5. The king loved the prince.
_______________________________________________
6. We saw a lion and a tiger at the zoo.
_______________________________________________
7. Sir, what would you like to have?
_______________________________________________
QD) Rewrite each sentence changing the gender of nouns and pronouns.
1. Her daughter is a doctor.
_____________________________________________
2. He had sold his car.
_____________________________________________
3. My aunt has two daughters.
_____________________________________________
4. His brother work as policeman.
_____________________________________________
5. He is writing a letter to his nephew.
_____________________________________________
6. The girl helped the old woman to cross the road.
_____________________________________________
7. My sister invited her friend to dinner.
_____________________________________________