Today we will learn about the gender of the noun & types of gender with the help of examples. Then we will learn how to convert one gender to another gender. In the end I will give you an exercise to practice.
Let me ask you a question. I will give you four nouns and you have to tell me either they are male or female.
- Boy
- Girl
- Baby
- Book
The first and second are straightforward, the boy is a male and girl is a female. Now What about the baby? Is it a male or female? It can be both, right? So it can be Male or female. What about a book? Is it a male or female? It is neither male nor female.
So in this way, each of them is represented by a different Gender,
Boys come under masculine gender.
Girls come under feminine gender.
Babies come under common gender.
The book comes under neuter gender
Types of gender of the Noun:-
So based on this classification, there are four types of gender.
- Masculine gender.
- Feminine gender.
- Common gender.
- Neuter gender.
1. Masculine gender:-
A noun is said to be masculine gender if it refers to a male living being.
For example:-
Man, Lion, Hero, King, Horse,Rooster etc
Let’s understand it using sentence:-
- The man looks gorgeous.
- Lion is the king of the jungle.
- The horse is running so fast.
- Every day the rooster wakes up at 4 o’clock in the morning.
Here, man, lion, horse, rooster all are masculine gender.
2. Feminine gender:-
A noun is said to be feminine gender if it refers to a female living being.
For example:-
Woman, Cow, Girl, Mare, Niece,Queen, etc
Let’s understand it using sentence:-
- The girl is playing football everyday.
- Heroine of this movie is gorgeous.
- Cow gives milk everyday.
- The hen gives eggs everyday.
3. Common gender:-
A noun is said to be common gender if it refers to a member of a species which can be a male or a female.
For example:-
Friend, Parents, Baby, Candidate, Doctor etc.
Let’s understand it using sentence:-
- A child is playing in the playground.
- A teacher is necessary for a good education.
- Parents must give time to their baby.
- Doctor saves the patient’s life by operation.
4. Neuter gender:-
A noun can be in the neuter gender if it refers to a member of a species which is neither a male nor a female.
For example:-
Chair, table, tree, star, mountain, street, book, school, paper, pencil, computer etc.
Let’s understand it using sentence:-
- Computers brought a new generation.
- Books are our best friends.
- Stars are not visible in the day-time.
- Tree is cleansing the air.
How to convert a masculine gender to a feminine gender:-
There are three ways to convert a masculine gender to feminine.
1. By using an entirely different word:-
| Masculine | Feminine |
| HUSBAND | MARE |
| HORSE | MARE |
| BUCK | DOE |
| BULL | COW |
| NEPHEW | NIECE |
2. By adding a Syllable(-ESS, -INE, -TRIX, -A etc):-
| Masculine | Feminine |
| AUTHOR | AUTHORESS |
| POET | POETESS |
| HERO | HEROINE |
| CONDUCTOR | CONDUCTRESS |
| TESTATOR | TESTATRIX |
3. By placing a word before or after:-
| Masculine | Feminine |
| GRANDFATHER | GRANDMOTHER |
| GREAT UNCLE | GREAT AUNT |
| PEACOCK | PEAHEN |
| SALESMAN | SALESWOMAN |
| WASHERMAN | WASHERWOMAN |
Exercises:-
Convert the following masculine gender to feminine gender:-
- Son (Use of different word).
- Waiter (Use of Syllable).
- Milkman (By placing a word before or after).
Comment your answer.
i hope after reading this article you have cleared all doubts about Synonyms & antonyms if there anything else you can comment below.
