THE NOUN - GENDER
(1.Masculine Gender, 2. Feminine Gender, 3.Common Gender, 4.Neuter Gender)
Definition (Gender of Noun)
The Gender of noun indicates the sex or the absence of sex.
For example, boy, girl, hero, heroine, lion, lioness, etc.
1. Masculine Gender :
Definition :
A noun that denotes a male sex is called Masculine Gender.
Masculine nouns are words for men, boys, and male animals.
Masculine Gender Examples
These nouns specifically denote males, whether human or animal.
2. Feminine Gender :
Definition :
A noun that denotes a female sex is called Feminine Gender.
Feminine nouns are words for women, girls, and female animals.
These nouns specifically denote females, whether human or animal.
3. Common Gender :
Definition :
A noun that denotes either a male or a female sex is said to be of the common gender.
e.g.
4. Neuter Gender :
Definition :
A noun that denotes a lifeless thing is called Neuter Gender. The noun that denotes a thing that is neither male nor female is called Neuter Gender.
e.g.
Ways of forming the feminine of Nouns
1. Here are some more masculine and feminine nouns for people.
| Masculine | Feminine |
| father | mother |
| son | daughter |
| brother | sister |
| nephew | niece |
| man | woman |
| uncle | aunt |
| master | mistress |
| emperor | empress |
| bachelor | maid / spinster |
| sir | madam |
2. Here are some masculine and feminine nouns for male and female animals. There is one general word for the animal and special word for male and female.
| Animal | Masculine | Feminine |
| chicken | rooster | hen |
| duck | drake | duck |
| cattle | bull | cow |
| goose | gander | goose |
| fox | fox | vixen |
| tiger | tiger | tigress |
| pig | boar | sow |
| horse | stallion | mare |
| donkey | jack | jenny |
3. By using an entirely different words; as
| Masculine | Feminine |
| boy | girl |
| bachelor | maid / spinster |
| brother | sister |
| dog | bitch |
| king | queen |
| drake | duck |
| monk | nun |
| hart | roe |
| buck | doe |
| earl | countees |
4. By adding a syllable (-ess, -ine, trix, -a, etc) as,
| Masculine | Feminine |
| author | authoress |
| count | countess |
| giant | giantess |
| heir | heiress |
| lion | lioness |
| host | hostess |
| mayor | mayoress |
| steward | stewardess |
| shepherd | shepherdess |
| poet | poetess |
4. By adding -ess after dropping the vowel of the masculine ending
| Masculine | Feminine |
| Actor | Actress |
| Duke | Duchess |
| Emperor | Empress |
| Tiger | Tigress |
| Waiter | waitress |
| Negro | Negress |
| Abbot | Abbess |
| Traitor | Traitress |
| Executor | Executix |
| Testator | Testatrix |
5. By a word suffix or prefix, like
| Masculine | Feminine |
| Man-servant | Maid-servant |
| Milk-man | Milk-maid |
| Grand-father | Grand-mother |
| Bull-calf | Cow-calf |
| Cock-Sparrow | Hen-Sparrow |
| He-goat | She-goat |
| Land-lord | Land-lady |
| Pea-cock | pea-hen |
Note : Objects without life 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 objects remarkable for strength and violence; as,
| The Sun | Summer | Winter | Death |
| The sun sheds his beams on rich and poor alike. |
The Feminine Gender is sometimes applied to objects remarkable for beauty, gentleness, and gracefulness; as,
| The Moon | the Earth | Spring | Nature |
| The moon has hidden her face behind a cloud. |
