# Total Different Base Words To Represent A Male -vs- Female **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666 "2009-11-23T18:27:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/1 "2009-11-23T18:27:09Z")
Here’s what I was thinking when we have a job for example, we often will have different forms for whether a female or male is doing it. Example: Waiter / Waitress Actor / Actress Aviator / Aviatrix But in each of those examples the base word is still the same. Wait is the base word or Act is the base word and we add a suffix depending on whether it’s male or female. I was wondering are there words that describe a male or female version but do not share a base word. Again actor and actress both share the base word ACT I’ll make up an example: Let’s say somone hammers rocks and we call it a hammeror if it was a male but a acmess if it was a woman. You see the female version in my made up example has nothing in common with the male version which takes the form from the base word hammer. I hope I’m explaining this right. Are there examples of this in real life? I’m not sure I explained this clearly enough so I’ll post it and see who answers and if it’s not clear, I’ll try to make it so. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/2 "2009-11-23T18:34:56Z")
The man/woman pairs, e.g. policeman/policewoman, still have something in common, i.e., the first part of the word. There’s the witch/wizard pair, if you think of witchcraft or wizardry as an occupation. ---
**Author:** ![Sanity\_Challenged](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de053/32.png) [@Sanity\_Challenged](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sanity_Challenged)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/3 "2009-11-23T18:40:21Z")
Pimp/Madame ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/4 "2009-11-23T18:43:23Z")
monk / nun ---
**Author:** ![Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8491ac/32.png) [@Fake\_Tales\_of\_San\_Francisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fake_Tales_of_San_Francisco)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/5 "2009-11-23T18:54:59Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > There’s the witch/wizard pair, if you think of witchcraft or wizardry as an occupation. They’re not really identical occupations either. A warlock is closer equivalent to witch. /pedantry. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/6 "2009-11-23T18:55:53Z")
Mother / Father ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/7 "2009-11-23T19:09:44Z")
Tailor/Seamstress ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/8 "2009-11-23T19:16:18Z")
> [@howye](#): > > Tailor/Seamstress I would say _seamster/seamstress_ myself. _Tailor_ is an unrelated (though obviously more common) synonym that does not imply either gender. ---
**Author:** ![fandango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b5ac83/32.png) [@fandango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fandango)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/9 "2009-11-23T19:39:42Z")
husband/wife ---
**Author:** ![fandango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b5ac83/32.png) [@fandango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fandango)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/10 "2009-11-23T19:43:06Z")
boy/girl ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/11 "2009-11-23T19:45:06Z")
> [@fandango](#): > > boy/girl _Boy_ and _girl_ are not occupations. Also, the earliest meaning of the latter was “a child or young person of either sex,” as one may discover by checking the Oxford English Dictionary. ---
**Author:** ![Noone\_Special](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/noone_special/32/2863_2.png) [@Noone\_Special](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Noone_Special)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/12 "2009-11-23T19:49:47Z")
Queen / King ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/13 "2009-11-23T19:52:31Z")
> [@Noone\_Special](#): > > Queen / King That’s a good one, as it is indeed an occupation, even though one carried on by only one person in a particular realm. Another pair is earl/countess, since there are no counts in English-speaking countries. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/14 "2009-11-23T20:05:39Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > That’s a good one, as it is indeed an occupation, even though one carried on by only one person in a particular realm. Another pair is earl/countess, since there are no counts in English-speaking countries. Not sure about that. I believe that titles correspond to territories held, not genders. An earl/earless holds an earldom. A count/countess holds a county. A duke/duchess holds two or more counties. ---
**Author:** ![fandango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b5ac83/32.png) [@fandango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fandango)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/15 "2009-11-23T20:06:06Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > _Boy_ and _girl_ are not occupations. Also, the earliest meaning of the latter was “a child or young person of either sex,” as one may discover by checking the Oxford English Dictionary. I don’t see any explicit restriction in the OP that it has to be an occupation. ---
**Author:** ![fandango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b5ac83/32.png) [@fandango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fandango)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/16 "2009-11-23T20:07:27Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > Not sure about that. I believe that titles correspond to territories held, not genders. > > An earl/earless holds an earldom. > > A count/countess holds a county. > > A duke/duchess holds two or more counties. How about Lord/Lady? Knight/Dame? ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/17 "2009-11-23T20:08:35Z")
In Japanese the Emperor is called 天皇 (tennō), but the Empress is 皇后 (kōgō). ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/18 "2009-11-23T20:13:03Z")
> [@fandango](#): > > I don’t see any explicit restriction in the OP that it has to be an occupation. Did you miss the first line? > [@Markxxx](#): > > Here’s what I was thinking when we have a job for example, we often will have different forms for whether a female or male is doing it. Anyway, _boy_ and _girl_ are not parallel to _actor_ and _actress_. They don’t come from the same root, for one thing. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/19 "2009-11-23T20:21:16Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > An earl/earless holds an earldom. In England at least, the female equivalent of an earl is a countess, not an earless - a word I think only means “without ears”. ---
**Author:** ![fandango](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b5ac83/32.png) [@fandango](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fandango)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2009, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666/20 "2009-11-23T20:21:38Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > Did you miss the first line? You mean the one where it states that the comparison for different jobs is an example? The title is “Total [sic] Different Base Words To Represent A Male -vs-Female”–says nothing about it being a job. Indeed, it says nothing about being human. Which leaves us open to Bull/Cow Doe/Buck Jenny/Jack [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/total-different-base-words-to-represent-a-male-vs-female/518666.md?page=2)