Have you ever heard the expression “sexist language”? If so, do you understand what this is? Do you know how to avoid it? In this article, you’ll see some examples of sexism in the English language, and learn how you can avoid being sexist while talking to people or writing a text.
Sexist Language
Sexist language refers to a type of language used that overshadows a specific gender, thus privileging another. Most commonly, this happens with male-related words overshadowing female-related words. Although many people fail to see the problem in these situations, this constitutes a very important topic to consider. Why? Because languages reflect the social, historical, and cultural behaviors of the people who speak them. In this sense, society shapes language as well as language shapes society. If people want to be more respectful toward others, starting with the language they use to address other people is a good start.
Pronouns in English
Pronouns can be very problematic regarding sexist language in English. This language doesn’t have a traditional, widespread gender-neutral pronoun to refer to another person; he is for males and she is for females.
In writing, people usually use “he/she” (or “s/he“), “him/her“, “his/her“, “himself/herself“, etc. to make their use of the language less sexist. In speaking, it’s a little bit more complicated.
This problem becomes even bigger when considering non-binary people, those who don’t self-identify as either male or female. If you’re interested in deepening your knowledge about gender-neutral pronouns, read our article Gender-Neutral Pronouns: An Eye-Opening Guide.
All of the problems mentioned above have made the use of the singular “they” increasingly popular.
| INSTEAD OF USING… | USE… |
| Every member should bring his membership card. | Every member should bring their membership card./Members should bring their membership card. |
| A responsible person looks after himself. | A responsible person looks after themself./Responsible people look after themselves. |
| “No one is more hated than he who speaks the truth” (Plato) | “No one is more hated than they who speak the truth” (Plato) |
Suffixes of masculine gender
Another problematic feature of the English language in terms of sexism is the suffixes of the masculine gender. Suffixes such as “-man“, “-master“, “-woman“, and “-ess” are gender-specific and thus should be avoided.
| INSTEAD OF USING… | USE… |
| policeman/policewoman | police officer |
| fireman/firewoman | firefighter |
| headmaster/headmistress | headteacher |
| waiter/waitress | server |
| mailman | postal worker |
Nouns, verbs, and adjectives with “man”
Some parts of speech also carry sexist elements in them. Some examples are nouns, verbs, and adjectives.
| INSTEAD OF USING… | USE… |
| manpower (noun) | workforce |
| manmade (adjective) | artificial |
| man up (phrasal verb) | be brave |
| man (verb) | staff |
Fight Sexist Language
Have you noticed that most of the time male-related words are used as traditional forms of the language to refer to different genders? This is not a coincidence. Remember that language reflects society.
The most important thing now is thinking about how you can avoid using sexist language so you can use your language to create a better world.
