Gender & identity

Gender

Alsogenderssocial gendergender vs sex

Definition

Gender refers to the roles, behaviours, expressions and identities that societies and individuals associate with being a woman, a man, or something else.

At a glance

  • Gender covers the social and personal side of being a woman, a man or something else.
  • Many researchers separate gender from sex, which refers to biological characteristics.
  • It includes identity, expression and the expectations other people place on someone.
  • Ideas about gender differ between cultures and change over time.
  • Several societies have long recognised more than two gender categories.

In detail

In everyday speech gender and sex are often used interchangeably, but many researchers separate them. Sex usually refers to biological characteristics such as chromosomes, hormones and anatomy. Gender covers the social and personal side: how people identify, how they present themselves, and the expectations others place on them.

Ideas about gender vary a great deal between cultures and change over time. Several societies have long recognised more than two gender categories, and many people today describe their gender in ways that do not fit a simple woman or man split.

In a sentence

  • The survey asks about gender and sex as two separate questions.
  • In our class we talked about how expectations of gender have changed since our grandparents were young.

Where the word comes from

Gender comes, via Old French, from the Latin genus, meaning kind or type, and was long used mainly for grammar. Its use for the social side of being a woman or man spread in psychology and sociology from the 1950s onwards.

Not to be confused with

  • Sex assigned at birth

    Sex assigned at birth is based on the body at birth; gender is about identity, roles and expression.

Common questions

What is the difference between sex and gender?

Sex usually refers to biological characteristics such as chromosomes, hormones and anatomy. Gender refers to identity, expression and social roles. In everyday speech the words are often swapped, but in research and health settings they are commonly kept apart.

How many genders are there?

There is no single agreed number. Many people identify as women or men, while others describe genders outside those two, and several cultures have traditionally recognised additional genders. Gender is described in different ways in different places.

Related terms

Sources

  1. World Health OrganizationGender and health