Why ESL teachers should study
about Gender & Language
1. “…we need to be aware of findings
concerning the differences between men’s
and women’s speech so that we will not
teach inappropriate forms to our students.”
2. “…research on speech patterns of men and
women who are native speakers of
American English constitutes an important
source of information regarding rules of
speaking in these communities.”
Wolfson, Nessa. 1889. Perspectives: Sociolinguistics and TESOL. Boston: Heinle & Heinle
Publishers, p. 162.
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Differences in Men’s and
Women’s Language
 Exogamous Amazon tribe
languages
 Gros Ventre American Indian Tribe (Montana)
pronunciation
 Yana (N. American Indian language)
morphology—affixes
 Chiquita (S. American Indian language)
morphology
 Japanese
lexis—vocabulary
pronouns
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson,
pp. 159-161.
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Factors in Gender
Differentiation in Language
Hierarchy—“Gender differences in language are often
just one aspect of more pervasive linguistic
differences in the society reflecting SOCIAL
STATUS or POWER differences.” [my emphasis]
Gender-Exclusive Social Roles—“The
responsibilities of women and men are different in
such communities, and everyone knows that, and
knows what they are.”
Cultural Practices—like EXOGAMOUS Amazon
Indians. Spouses speak different languages
because they must marry out of tribe and each
tribe has its own language.
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson,
pp. 159, 162-163.
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Gender Differences 1
“In many speech communities, when
women use more of a linguistic form
than men, it is generally the standard
form—the overtly prestigious form—that
women favour. When men use a form
more often than women, it is usually a
vernacular form, one which is not
admired overtly by the society as a
whole, and which is not cited as the
‘correct’ form.”
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, p. 166.
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Gender Differences 2
Concerning Western speech communities, Holmes
says “when women use more of a linguistic form
than men, it is generally the standard form—the
overtly prestigious form—that women favor.
When men use a form more often than women, it
is usually a vernacular form, one which is not
admired overtly by the society as a whole and
which is not cited as the ‘correct’ form.” In 1983
Sociolinguist Peter Trudgill said this is “‘the single
most consistent finding to emerge from
sociolinguistic studies over the past 20 years’”.
Holmes, Janet. 2001. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 2nd edition. London: Longman, p. 156.
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Preference for Vernacular
[ In ] over [ IN ]
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, p. 164.
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Explanations for Differences
between Women's and Men's
Language
1. Social status explanation
2. Women’s role as guardians of society’s values
3. Women’s status as a subordinate group
4. Vernacular forms express masculinity
5. Alternative explanations
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson,
pp. 167-174.
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Lakoff’s Features of
Women’s Language 1
(a) Lexical hedges or fillers
(you know, sort of, well, you see)
(b) Tag questions
(she’s very nice, isn’t she?)
(c) Rising intonation on declaratives
(it’s really good)
(d) ‘Empty’ adjectives
(divine, charming, cute)
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, pp.
302-303.
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Lakoff’s Features of
Women’s Language 2
(e) Precise color terms
(magenta, aquamarine)
(f) Intensifiers
(just, so: I like him so much.)
(g) ‘Hypercorrect’ grammar
(consistent use of standard verb forms)
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, pp.
302-303.
9/16:6
Lakoff’s Features of
Women’s Language 3
(h) ‘Superpolite’ forms
(indirect requests, euphemisms)
(i) Avoidance of strong swear words
(fudge, my goodness)
(j) Emphatic stress
(it was a BRILLIANT performance)
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, pp.
302-303.
10/16:6
Distribution of Tag Questions by
Function and Sex of Speaker1
Function of tag
Women
%
Expressing uncertainty 35
Facilitative
59
Softening
6
Confrontational
—
Men
%
61
26
13
—
Total
100
100
N2
51
39
(Source: Based on Holmes 1984a: 54)
1 Based on a 60,000 word corpus containing equal amounts of female and
male speech collected in a range of matched contexts.
2 N is presumably the number of tags found in the sample.
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, p. 307.
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Women's and Men's Idle Talk 1
Women
“Its overall function for women is to affirm
solidarity and maintain the social
relationships between the women involved.”
“Women's gossip focuses predominantly on
personal experiences and personal
relationships, on personal problems and
feelings. It may include criticism of the
behaviour of others, but women tend to
avoid criticizing people directly because this
would cause discomfort.”
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, p. 316.
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Women's and Men's Idle Talk 2
Men
“The male equivalent of women's gossip is
difficult to identify. In parallel situations the
topics men discuss tend to focus on things
and activities, rather than personal
experiences and feelings. Topics like sport,
cars, and possessions turn up regularly.
The focus is on information and facts rather
than on feelings and reactions.”
Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics, 4th edition. London: Pearson, p. 317.
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Language Teacher’s
Responsibility
“‘It is not the responsibility of the language teacher
qua linguist to enforce Anglo-Saxon standards of
behavior, linguistic or otherwise. Rather, it is the
teacher’s job to equip the student to express
her/himself in exactly the way s/he chooses to do
so—rudely, tactfully, or in an elaborately polite
manner. What we want to prevent is her/his
being unintentionally rude or subservient. It may,
of course, behoove the teacher to point out the
likely consequences of certain types of linguistic
behavior.’”
Thomas, Jenny (1983: 96) cited in Nessa Wolfson. Perspectives: Sociolinguistics and
TESOL. Boston: Heinle & Heinle Publishers, 1989, p. 31.
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What ESL Learners Should
Know about Sexist Language 1
1. Teach how to use appropriate generic
pronouns, especially in writing. (165)
2. Promote use of generic "they" (especially in
speech)
3. Remind students that even if they know that
some English speakers use "terms of
endearment" that this is probably useful
only as PASSIVE/RECEPTIVE knowledge.
Do not do it yourself. (170)
Wolfson, Nessa. 1989. Perspectives: Sociolinguistics and TESOL. Boston: Heinle & Heinle
Publishers, Chapter 8: Language and Sex, pp. 162-187.
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What ESL Learners Should
Know about Sexist Language 2
4. Terms degrading women exist and are
offensive. (174)
5. Be aware that references to men or women
using terms for the other sex may have
connotations the learner does not know or
understand. (175)
6. Point out "appropriately sex-linked forms of
speech". (185)
Wolfson, Nessa. 1989. Perspectives: Sociolinguistics and TESOL. Boston: Heinle & Heinle
Publishers, Chapter 8: Language and Sex, pp. 162-187.
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