Why do we put ress at the end of some words, like actress, mayoress and murderess, but not for others like doctress, accountantress, or teacheress?

Question

Why do we put ress at the end of some words, like actress, mayoress and murderess, but not for others like doctress, accountantress, or teacheress?

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Answer 1

>Why do we put ress at the end of some words, like actress, mayoress and murderess, but not for others like doctress, accountantress, or teacheress?

Different English words come from different backgrounds: Celtic, Germanic, Latin, etc. Each of these backgrounds has a different way of altering the male form of the word to become the female form. Words ending in ER get changed to end in RESS for the female: hunter->huntress. Others use ETTE or ELLE, or INE. The suffix depends on the ending letters of the root word and on the history behind the word.