Feminine
English has three genders for nouns and
pronouns: masculine, feminine, and
neuter. The associated singular pronouns are "he", "she"
and "it". Unless obviously male (e.g. man, boy, bull) or
female (e.g. lady, vixen, sow), nouns tend to be neuter by default. An
animal can be referred to as "it", or "he" or
"she" when the sex is known. Large machines, such as ships and
trains, which - by default - are neuter, are sometimes affectionally called
"she".
Interactive example:
|
He / She
/ It / Them / Rooster / Dog / Bitch
/ Vixen [show
me the feminine ones] |
For ease, "he" is often used in formal writing to represent both "he" and "her". Similarly, "his" is used for "his" and "her".
 Each employee is
to place his/her name next to his/her locker. 
(too unwieldy)
|
See also:
Glossary of grammatical terms
|
