Easy English Tips

Word choices and grammatical constructions that ignore or minimize the presence and contributions of one sex in society—at home or school or the workplace, in business or professional spheres, in social or personal relationships—may be considered sexist. Many writers and speakers try to avoid such usages, and they reject as well language that calls attention to the sex of an individual when it is irrelevant to the role or situation under discussion. Here are specific suggestions for avoiding sexist language, from replacing one term with another to recasting sentences.

2. Using gender-neutral terms wherever possible to designate occupations, positions, roles, etc., rather than terms that specify sex. A full list of nonsexist job designations can be found in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles published by the U.S. Department of Labor.

a. Avoiding terms ending in -man or other gender-specific forms. One approach is to use words ending in -person. Some of these terms, like salesperson and spokesperson, have achieved wide acceptance; others, like councilperson and weatherperson, still sound awkward to many people. When discussing an individual whose sex is known, gender-specific terms such as anchorwoman, businessman, saleswoman, and salesman can be used, although in this situation, too, many people still prefer the neutral terms.

Instead of	Consider using
anchorman	anchor
bellman, bellhop	bellboy
businessman	businessperson or more specifically business executive, manager, business owner, retailer, etc.
cameraman	camera operator, cinematographer
chairman	chair, chairperson
cleaning lady, cleaning woman	housecleaner, office cleaner, housekeeper
clergyman	member of the clergy, cleric or more specifically minister, rabbi, priest, pastor, etc.
congressman	representative, member of Congress, legislator
fireman	firefighter
forefather	ancestor
housewife	homemaker
insurance man	insurance agent
layman	layperson, nonspecialist, nonprofessional
mailman, postman	mail carrier, letter carrier
policeman	police officer, law enforcement officer
salesman	salesperson, sales representative
spokesman	spokesperson, representative
stewardess, steward	flight attendant
weatherman	weather reporter, weathercaster, meteorologist
workman	work

b. Avoiding "feminine" suffixes such as -ess, -ette, -trix, and -enne. Words with these suffixes are often regarded as implying triviality or inferiority on the part of the person or role involved, as well as making unnecessary reference to the person's sex.

Instead of	Consider using
Authoress	author
aviatrix	aviator
poetess	poet
proprietress	proprietor
sculptress	sculptor
Suffragette	suffragist
usherette	usher

A few such terms, like actress, heiress, and hostess, remain in active use, though many women prefer the terms actor, heir, and host. Several substitutions for both waitress and waiter—waitperson, waitron, and server—are gaining ground, but none has yet replaced the traditional designations. Legal terms like executrix and testatrix are still used, but with diminishing frequency.

c. Eliminating as modifiers the words lady, female, girl, male, and the like for terms that otherwise have no gender designation, as in lady doctor, female lawyer, girl athlete, or male secretary, unless they serve to clarify meaning. Such expressions tend to patronize the individual involved by suggesting that the norm for the role is the gender not specified, and that for someone of the gender specified to be found in that role is somehow remarkable or peculiar. When it is necessary to point out the female aspect of a person in a given role or occupation, using female or woman as a modifier is preferable to lady: My grandmother was the first woman doctor to practice in this town.

3. Referring to members of both sexes by parallel terms, names, or titles.

Instead of	Consider using
man and wife	husband and wife
men and girls	men and women, boys and girls
men and ladies	men and women, ladies and gentlemen
President Johnson and Mrs. Meir	President Johnson and Prime Minister Meir or Mr. Johnson and Mrs. Mei

4. Avoiding the third person singular masculine pronoun when referring to an individual who could be of either sex, as in When a reporter covers a controversial story, he has a responsibility to present both sides of the issue. Rephrasing the sentence in any of the following ways will circumvent this situation:

a. Structuring the sentence in the plural and using the third person plural pronouns they/their/theirs/them: When reporters cover controversial stories, they have a responsibility . . . . (Some people approve the use of a plural pronoun to refer to an indefinite like everyone or anyone, as in Everyone packed their own lunch, but many people do not, at least in formal writing.)

b. Using either first or second person pronouns—I/me/my/mine, we/us/our/ours, you/your/yours—that do not specify sex: As a reporter covering a controversial story, I have a responsibility . . . or As reporters covering controversial stories, we have a responsibility . . . or When you are a reporter covering a controversial story, you have a responsibility . . . .

c. Using the third person one: As a reporter covering a controversial story, one has a responsibility . . . . (Although common in British usage, one can seem stilted or excessively formal to Americans. This pronoun is most effective when used sparingly.)

d. Using both the masculine and feminine singular pronouns: When a reporter covers a controversial story, he or she (or she or he) has a responsibility . . . . (This approach is the one most likely to produce awkwardness. But if the pronouns are not repeated too often, it may sometimes be the most satisfactory solution.) The abbreviated forms he/she, his/her, him/her (and the reverse forms, with the feminine pronoun first) are also available, though they are not widely used in formal writing. The blend s/he is also used by some people.

e. Using the passive voice: When controversial stories are covered, there is a responsibility to present both sides of the issue (or both sides of the issue should be presented).

f. Rephrasing the sentence to avoid any pronoun: When covering a controversial story, a reporter has a responsibility . . . .

g. Using nouns, like person, individual, or a synonym appropriate to the context, instead of pronouns: Reporters often cover controversial stories. In such cases the journalist has a responsibility . . . .

h. Using a relative clause: A reporter who covers a controversial story has a responsibility . . . .Different solutions will work better in different contexts.

5. Avoiding language that disparages, stereotypes, or patronizes either sex.

a. Avoiding reference to an adult female as a girl; to women collectively as the distaff side or the fair sex; to a wife as the little woman; to a female college student as a coed; to an unmarried woman as a bachelor girl, spinster, or old maid.

b. Being aware that such generalized phrases as lawyers/doctors/farmers and their wives or a teacher and her students or a secretary and her boss can be taken to exclude an entire sex from even the possibility of occupying a role. It is possible to choose words or forms that specify neither sex or acknowledge both sexes, as in lawyers . . . and their spouses (or families or companions); a teacher and his or her students (or a teacher and students or teachers and their students); a secretary and his or her boss (or a secretary and boss).