“Woman” is preferred to “female”, when used as a noun. Either is grammatically fine (though I do think it sounds more normal to use “woman”), but some women dislike being called females.
I think that you’ve mistaken which comment of yours I’m replying to (because you don’t use the word “female” anywhere upthread of me). I was giving an example of something to dislike about the sentence “Even if you are a lurker; ESPECIALLY if you are a female!” in the OP.
“Woman” is preferred to “female”, when used as a noun. Either is grammatically fine (though I do think it sounds more normal to use “woman”), but some women dislike being called females.
Agreed; when I hear “male” or “female”, I tend to think of animal husbandry, not human participation. What’s wrong with “man” and “woman” ?
I’d hesitate to use “woman” if only because a not insignificant fraction of our members are still in their teens.
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I think that you’ve mistaken which comment of yours I’m replying to (because you don’t use the word “female” anywhere upthread of me). I was giving an example of something to dislike about the sentence “Even if you are a lurker; ESPECIALLY if you are a female!” in the OP.
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