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From: tll@druxu.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: "woman" as an adjective
Message-ID: <899@druxu.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 28-Jan-84 20:16:41 EST
Article-I.D.: druxu.899
Posted: Sat Jan 28 20:16:41 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 1-Feb-84 01:19:54 EST
Organization: AT&T Information Systems Laboratories, Denver
Lines: 30

The use of "woman" as an adjective (as in "woman astronaut" and "women
engineers") is interesting in that it is an example in English where the
adjective changes form depending on the number of the noun it modifies.
This, I think, is unfortunate, since one of the nice features of English
is that adjectives do not change form.

Does anyone know why we use "woman" as an adjective instead of "female"?
Is there some nasty connotation associated with "female" of which I'm
not aware?  I have only once heard "man" used as an adjective ("man
nurse") and I thought it sounded pretty stupid.

This usage of "woman" did not originate with the recent feminist
movement (whatever that really means).  The "League of Women Voters" has
been around for a long time, although no dictionary I've checked has
picked up this usage.

Anyway, I have the following questions:

	1) Why do we use "woman" instead of "female"?  Alternately, why
		do we use the word "male" instead of "man"?  (Maybe
		because it's the right word?)
	2) Does anyone know of any other adjectives in English that
		change form in any way (reflecting a change in number,
		case, gender, etc. of the modified noun)?
	3) Does anyone have a dictionary that includes this usage of
		"woman"?

			Tom Laidig
			AT&T Information Systems Laboratories, Denver
			...!ihnp4!druxu!tll