Why are there gendered words for some professions like actor and actress but not e.g. doctor and doctress?
In: 1937
English is really a casserole of words borrowed and adapted from other languages. Some of those languages are inherently gendered, others not.
Also, distinctions like actor/actress can be useful when the roles they perform are themselves gendered. If you’re casting the role of a mom, you probably only want actresses to audition.
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