Headline Roundup • December 16th, 2022
Cambridge Dictionary Updates its Definitions of 'Man' and 'Woman'
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Cambridge Dictionary recently updated its definitions of "man" and "woman" to include versions that mention transgender people.
The Changes: The primary entry for "man" remains "an adult male human being," but a new secondary entry defines the term as "an adult who lives and identifies as male though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth." The added secondary entry for "woman" reads similarly.
For Context: LGBTQ+ issues, gender dysphoria and transition procedures, and the definitions of "man" and "woman" are the focus of an ongoing culture war. Dictionary.com picked "woman" as its word of 2022, saying the choice "reflects how the intersection of gender, identity, and language dominates the current cultural conversation." In 2020, Merriam-Webster expanded its definitions of "male" and "female" to include "having a gender identity that is the opposite" of the other. According to SimilarWeb, Cambridge Dictionary is the #9 most popular online dictionary worldwide, with over 63 million estimated visits in October.
How the Media Covered It: Right-rated outlets covered the story more prominently than left- and center-rated sources did. Coverage from the left typically framed the move as rightfully more inclusive of transgender people. A Washington Post (Lean Left bias) report highlighted prior threats against dictionary publishers over their definitions of "man" and "woman." Right-rated voices often criticized the change. A writer for the Post Millennial (Lean Right bias) called it an "outright lie" meant to "appease trans activists."
Featured Coverage of this Story
AFP / ANGELA WEISS
The Cambridge Dictionary recently updated its entries for "man" and "woman" to include transgender people.
In addition to "an adult female human being," the dictionary's entry for the word "woman" now also includes the definition "an adult who lives and identifies as female though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth." A similar change was made to the entry for the word "man."
The updates were rolled out in October, a spokesperson for the Cambridge Dictionary told ABC News.
However, these changes only made their way...
Washington Examiner
The Cambridge Dictionary has officially changed its definitions of "man" and "woman."
Previously defining the terms as a representation of biological sex , the definitions now include individuals who identify differently than the gender they were assigned at birth.
A "woman" is now defined as "an adult who lives and identifies as female though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth."
A "man" is now defined as "an adult who lives and identifies as male though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth."
The new definitions are representative...
Adobe Stock
The Cambridge Dictionary recently updated its entries for “man” and “woman” to include transgender people – the latest dictionary to broaden its lexicon to reflect evolving language around gender.
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, when the dictionary’s expanded definition of “woman” garnered backlash from conservative commentators on social media and was subsequently covered by right-leaning media outlets.
While the Cambridge Dictionary’s primary definition for “woman” remains “an adult female human...
