The OED defines ‘gender’, excluding obsolete meanings, as follows:
gender
Grammar.
1.a.
c1390–
In some (esp. Indo-European) languages, as Latin, French, German, English, etc.: each of the classes (typically masculine, feminine, neuter, common) of nouns and pronouns distinguished by the different inflections which they have and which they require in words syntactically associated with them; similarly applied to adjectives (and in some languages) verbs, to denote the appropriate form for accompanying a noun of such a class. Also: the fact, condition, or property of belonging to such a class; the classification of language in this way.
Sometimes called grammatical gender, to distinguish this sense from natural gender: see grammatical gender n., natural gender n. In most European languages, grammatical gender is now only very loosely associated with natural distinctions of sex.
English is regarded as possessing natural gender in that certain pronouns expressing natural contrasts in gender are selected to refer to nouns according to the meaning of the nouns, the contrasts being either between masculine (e.g. he, his, etc.) and feminine (e.g. she, her, etc.) or between personal (e.g. the abovementioned masculine and feminine pronouns and who, whoever, etc.) and non-personal (e.g. it, its, which, etc.). In recent times nouns incorporating gender suffixes (esp. those indicating females and formed on generic nouns, such as authoress, poetess, etc.) have become much restricted in use.
common, epicene, feminine, masculine, neuter gender, etc.: see the first element.
1.b.
1819–
In extended use. Esp. in non-European languages: any of several other analogous categories into which nouns may be divided (regardless of any connection with sex).
3.a.
1474–
gen. Males or females viewed as a group; = sex
n.11. Also: the property or fact of belonging to one of these groups.
Originally extended from the grammatical use at sense 1 (sometimes humorously), as also in Anglo-Norman and Old French. In the 20th cent., as sex came increasingly to mean sexual intercourse (see sex n.1 4b), gender began to replace it (in early use euphemistically) as the usual word for the biological grouping of males and females. It is now often merged with or coloured by sense 3b.
3.b.
1945–
Psychology and Sociology (originally U.S.). The state of being male or female as expressed by social or cultural distinctions and differences, rather than biological ones; the collective attributes or traits associated with a particular sex, or determined as a result of one’s sex. Also: a (male or female) group characterized in this way.
I’m not disputing the definitions, it’s already settled as indicated in the copied text.
And even if the OED were disputing this, it is already superior in authority to the OP, to you, and likely everyone else who read that link post, so its definitions are already accepted widely enough that random people on an internet forum can’t possibly alter that acceptance one way or the other.
Because it’s already settled, at least according to some authority with a better track record and higher credibility than any individual author/reviewer/OP/etc…
That’s pretty much always the intended meaning, whenever anyone copies text straight from a dictionary anywhere on this site.
Entries 1a and 1b are obviously not not relevant to the OP, which is mainly about the sense in 3b (maybe a little bit the 3a sense too, since it is “merged with or coloured by sense 3b”).
Entry 3b looks (to me) sufficiently broad and vague that it doesn’t really rule anything out. Do you think it contradicts anything that’s in the OP?
The OED defines ‘gender’, excluding obsolete meanings, as follows:
gender
Grammar.
1.a. c1390– In some (esp. Indo-European) languages, as Latin, French, German, English, etc.: each of the classes (typically masculine, feminine, neuter, common) of nouns and pronouns distinguished by the different inflections which they have and which they require in words syntactically associated with them; similarly applied to adjectives (and in some languages) verbs, to denote the appropriate form for accompanying a noun of such a class. Also: the fact, condition, or property of belonging to such a class; the classification of language in this way. Sometimes called grammatical gender, to distinguish this sense from natural gender: see grammatical gender n., natural gender n. In most European languages, grammatical gender is now only very loosely associated with natural distinctions of sex. English is regarded as possessing natural gender in that certain pronouns expressing natural contrasts in gender are selected to refer to nouns according to the meaning of the nouns, the contrasts being either between masculine (e.g. he, his, etc.) and feminine (e.g. she, her, etc.) or between personal (e.g. the abovementioned masculine and feminine pronouns and who, whoever, etc.) and non-personal (e.g. it, its, which, etc.). In recent times nouns incorporating gender suffixes (esp. those indicating females and formed on generic nouns, such as authoress, poetess, etc.) have become much restricted in use. common, epicene, feminine, masculine, neuter gender, etc.: see the first element.
1.b. 1819– In extended use. Esp. in non-European languages: any of several other analogous categories into which nouns may be divided (regardless of any connection with sex).
3.a. 1474– gen. Males or females viewed as a group; = sex n.11. Also: the property or fact of belonging to one of these groups. Originally extended from the grammatical use at sense 1 (sometimes humorously), as also in Anglo-Norman and Old French. In the 20th cent., as sex came increasingly to mean sexual intercourse (see sex n.1 4b), gender began to replace it (in early use euphemistically) as the usual word for the biological grouping of males and females. It is now often merged with or coloured by sense 3b.
3.b. 1945– Psychology and Sociology (originally U.S.). The state of being male or female as expressed by social or cultural distinctions and differences, rather than biological ones; the collective attributes or traits associated with a particular sex, or determined as a result of one’s sex. Also: a (male or female) group characterized in this way.
See Disputing Definitions
How does linking this make sense?
I’m not disputing the definitions, it’s already settled as indicated in the copied text.
And even if the OED were disputing this, it is already superior in authority to the OP, to you, and likely everyone else who read that link post, so its definitions are already accepted widely enough that random people on an internet forum can’t possibly alter that acceptance one way or the other.
Okay? Why are you telling us this?
Because it’s already settled, at least according to some authority with a better track record and higher credibility than any individual author/reviewer/OP/etc…
That’s pretty much always the intended meaning, whenever anyone copies text straight from a dictionary anywhere on this site.
Entries 1a and 1b are obviously not not relevant to the OP, which is mainly about the sense in 3b (maybe a little bit the 3a sense too, since it is “merged with or coloured by sense 3b”).
Entry 3b looks (to me) sufficiently broad and vague that it doesn’t really rule anything out. Do you think it contradicts anything that’s in the OP?