Cambridge Dictionary has announced to recently updated its entries for “man” and “woman” to include transgender people.
A spokesperson for the Cambridge Dictionary told CNN that the updates went into effect in October. But the move seemed to go largely unnoticed until this week.
While the Cambridge Dictionary’s primary definition for “woman” remains “an adult female human being,” a second definition refers to “an adult who lives and identifies as female though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth.”
Similarly, the British reference guide defines “man” as “an adult male human being” and also “an adult who lives and identifies as male though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth.”
Example sentences provided by the dictionary include “Mary is a woman who was assigned male at birth” and “Their doctor encouraged them to live as a man for a while before undergoing surgical transition.”
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“(Our editors) carefully studied usage patterns of the word woman and concluded that this definition is one that learners of English should be aware of to support their understanding of how the language is used,” a Cambridge Dictionary spokesperson said in a statement to CNN. “The first definition at the entry for woman remains unchanged and continues to be ‘an adult female human being’.”
On the other hand, Dictionary.com announced “woman” as its 2022 word of the year, citing how “the very matter of the definition of the word ‘woman’ was at the center of so many consequential moments, discussions, and decisions in our society.”
However, the world is still in debate whether or not trans individuals and LGBTQ community members should be considered inclusive with such terms. Scotland’s highest court dismissed a legal challenge brought by the group For Women Scotland, who argued that trans women shouldn’t be included in the definition of “women” under a law aimed at improving the gender balance on public boards.
Whereas in the United States of America, the Republican politicians have repeatedly evoked the definition of “woman” in their attacks on transgender people. As far as Pakistan is concerned, transgenders in the country are still struggling to get their own identity, moreover are victims of abuse, hate crimes, killings, and other forms of injustice.
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