In 2025, is it time to claim back the word "gender"?

[OneAmberFinch]

Before I start I should say that I'm the kind of person who furiously writes "MY SEX IS FEMALE" on doctor's forms that ask for gender with a free text form. I get why it's important to be clear, and not risk using language that might be re-interpreted to mean "gender identity". I know the history of the term gender in feminist analysis.

But lately I've been wondering whether that's ceding unnecessary ground?

Particularly in the US but to some extent here as well, there's a clear backlash and return to normality on the trans issue. But, possibly because in the US the "GC" movement is less feminist-led and more "common-sense/realist"-led (for lack of better terms, and not to imply they're at odds with each other!), I see a lot more people just out-and-out saying "THERE ARE ONLY TWO GENDERS". (Or for example, see the Trump day 1 ruling which we've been discussing.)

And part of me is trained to think "no, no, there are only two SEXES, be clear!" - but another part is increasingly thinking "you know what, yes, there are only two genders, and gender means sex, and why are we complicating this?"

And then I go on to think that it's ceding ground to throw our hands up and say, fine, yes anywhere you see a government ruling/law/etc that says "gender" you should assume it means "gender identity" and not "sex". I think it's very hard to translate to normal people when you have a campaign for something like "Petition to change the word gender to sex in the NHS forms" (etc). Because honestly, they mean the same thing to most people who aren't involved in the TQ++ or GC worlds.

Very fair to continue to talk about "gender roles", "gendered expectations" etc in the context of feminist analysis, but I don't think anyone is seriously still using the undecorated word "gender" to refer to this in the 1970s sense - it's not worth "saving" it for use in that way when more explicit terms can be used instead.

I think gender is the polite version or sex, so I don't have a problem with there are only 2 genders because there are. Cultural expectations of the genders maybe a social construct and can and do change, I know I'm a women and the expected behaviours for women have changed in my life time, the genders, however, have not, no matter what a certain unhinged ideology claims.

Gender was never part of everyday language in the UK.

It is a myth that it was used as a polite way to refer to someones sex.

That's why we have / had a SEX discrimination Act.

Gender was part of academic studies.

That is why queer activists got Women's Studies banished from universities and gender studies set up in their place.

Sex is about biological reality.

Gender is about perceived common factors in people of the same sex.

At least women's liberationist knew this which is why ending gender stereo types which worked against women as a sex class dominated by the sex class of men.

Can we please at least know out history.

Noboy normally uses gender. Onle recent generation who have been through the queer trans agenda imposes on universities.

Not only would it muddy the isse because sex and gender are NOT the same thing, but it concedes to the trans activists.

And even in terms of the plain English campaign

Sex = biological reality

Gender = concepts eg femininity and masculinity (which all feminists should be opposing anyway because they are a straight jacket).

How are we ever going to move forward if we keep having to go back over the same old ground.

This probably isn't helpful but my instant reaction is if/when we defeat GII, I never ever want to hear the word "gender" again.

I remember using gender as a synonym for sex, ten or fifteen years ago. (Long before I knew anything about gender identity ideology). It wasn't even squeamishness at using the word 'sex' - it had a utility in differentiating from the sex act.
E.g. 'sex-based violence' could be interpreted to mean rape or violence against women.
I see less use for 'gender' as it is currently used. I don't really care what sex you'd prefer to be (that's entirely in your head and I still consider you to be your biological sex) and gendered expectations are

It is a polite way to say sex on medical forms. It was on a paediatrician form 2 years ago. And I crossed it out and wrote sex. The receptionist said yes it meant sex.

Nothing to do with being polite.

It is on medical forms because transactivists have infiltrated virtually every institution in the UK.

I agree that some who are younger and have only lived in a post queer / trans campaign think it is interchangable.

But that is actually what they were aiming for.

By making a word that was about biological fact interchangeable with a word that was about concepts (now a belief) was a stage in the campaign to say that if you think you are the opposite sex then that is possible.

By not being bothered about it they have won.

@IwantToRetire And even in terms of the plain English campaign

Sex = biological reality

Gender = concepts eg femininity and masculinity (which all feminists should be opposing anyway because they are a straight jacket).

How are we ever going to move forward if we keep having to go back over the same old ground.

I think this is my point: we will keep going back over the same old ground because this is a conceptualisation that comes from academic feminism and isn't the way normal non-feminist non-transactivists understand the words.

To them, sex = gender = biological reality

Hence phrases like "there are two genders: XX and XY!" being statements that have mass agreement.

What's the point of opposing a statement like that? Just to preserve an academic distinction?

As you say, if we continue to use the definition of "gender" in the academic feminist sense, a social construct, that's what opens the door to using it for self-id etc. Compared to just bluntly saying "gender means sex, end of" - and using more descriptive phrases like "gender identity" or "gender roles" when wanting to talk about something other than biological sex.

I'm with you, Wanda.

We don't need a "polite way to say sex". Nobody has ever found the word "sex" impolite except perhaps for early twentieth century grandmothers.

Gender is used in the UK legal system eg. the gender pay gap. Sex pay gap has different connotations!

I agree too. The word has just been so tarnished now anyway.

I’ve never got my knickers in a twist about the word ‘gender’ - it still means sex to me and therefore gender correlates with sex.

Anything else is fairy tale bollocks and if companies and organisations want to cause confusion with made-up pathetic terms that have no basis in reality, well that’s really not my problem.

Well, we'll probably still use it in language-learning for many languages.

Yes, I think we need to reclaim it. It always used to mean sex until it was co-opted. I think it's time to take language back and always use correct language. So no pronouns to be kind because we now know where that has led.

I personally don't have an issue with saying sex, and plan to continue doing so - but to also treat the word gender as = to sex, matching the way it's used colloquially.

e.g. if my employer had an unclear policy referring to "gender"

Should I A) ask them to find/replace gender with sex, because gender means self-id/gender identity or B) ask them to write one line at the bottom saying "to avoid doubt, gender refers to biological sex at birth wherever used".

I used to think (A) and now I think (B)

I agree, OP, and in fact gender was used as a synonym for sex for many decades before this became an issue.

I agree but many posters are absolutely insistent that gender has never meant sex, despite many of us remembering differently. In my own workplace our computerised records use 'gender' and I know for a fact that this had nothing to do with the trans debate because a) the form was created 15 years ago when this wasn't on many radars and b) I was there when it was created

And the reality is that whatever word you use the TRAs will try and change the meaning - hence the all the irrelevant nonsense in the last few years about DSDs and the insistence that humans can change biological sex/sex is a social construct. They just move the goalposts.

I agree but many posters are absolutely insistent that gender has never meant sex, despite many of us remembering differently.

This. I find it uncanny, I've even been accused of bad faith and dishonesty for saying so (not on MN, though).

Gender is a social construct - pretty sure I learnt that in a level psychology c25 years ago? Up until very recently its usage was also synonymous with sex though, and I guess forms have not fully caught on to that (or an awful lot of people - see ‘gender reveal’ parties etc.

I don’t know what it even means any more - I think self acceptance in rational, sensible adults would tend to naturally override any incongruence with the social construct but a lot of trans people would seem to disagree! The whole thing is slightly baffling - ie I am female, how is it possible to ‘feel’ like I am not? I ‘feel’ like me, I have no idea how a typical female feels and don’t actually care. As a rational, sensible adult, why would I?

This is from the online etymology dictionary:
https://www.etymonline.com/word/gender
"The "male-or-female sex" sense of the word is attested in English from early 15c. As sex (n.) took on erotic qualities in 20c., gender came to be the usual English word for "sex of a human being," in which use it was at first regarded as colloquial or humorous. Later often in feminist writing with reference to social attributes as much as biological qualities; this sense first attested 1963. Gender-bender is from 1977, popularized from 1980, with reference to pop star David Bowie."