Gender-neutral language,
gender-inclusive language,
inclusive language, or
gender neutrality is a form of
linguistic prescriptivism that aims to eliminate (or neutralize) reference to
biological sex or
gender with regard to terms that describe people. For example, the words
policeman and
stewardess are
gender-specific; the corresponding gender-neutral terms are
police officer and
flight attendant. Other gender-specific terms, such as
actor and
actress, may be replaced by the originally male term; for example,
actor used regardless of gender. Further, some traditionally gender-neutral terms, such as
chairman, are increasingly seen by some, but not all, as being gender-specific. Gender-neutral language may also involve the avoidance of
gender-specific pronouns, such as
he, when the gender of the person referred to is unknown; they may be replaced with
gender-neutral pronouns – possibilities in English include
he or she,
s/he, or
singular they.