Unit 3.1

Compound Nouns for Jobs

Nouns - 2 minutes

Introduction

A compound noun is a noun formed by two or more existing words which are combined to create a whole new noun. {see Compound Nouns, A1 level}

Gender neutral nouns for jobs (professions) are used to prevent discrimination.

Form

The most commonly used compound nouns for jobs (with masculine, feminine and politically correct forms) are:

MASCULINE	FEMININE	POLITICALLY CORRECT
Businessman	Businesswoman	Businessperson
Cameraman	Camera operator	Camera operator
Flight attendant	Air hostess	Flight attendant
Dutchman	Dutch person	Dutch person
Fireman	Firefighter	Firefighter
Homemaker	Housewife	Homemaker

Example

She/He is a very talented businessperson.
She/He is such an incredible camera operator!
She/He works as a flight attendant.
Anouk/Desiderius Erasmus is a famous Dutch person.
She/He worked as a firefighter.
She/He enjoys being a homemaker.

Use

There are many masculine and feminine words for jobs, but it is better to use politically correct forms, to avoid discrimination.

Summary

We can use masculine, feminine and gender neutral compound nouns for jobs.

The most commonly used compound nouns for jobs are: businessperson, camera operator, flight attendant, dutch person, firefighter, homemaker…

For example:
— “His father is a fireman.” = A fireman is a male person working at the fire department.
— “His father is a firefighter.” / “His mother is a firefighter.” = A firefighter is a male or female person working at the fire department.

NOTE: In order to be more politically correct and to avoid discrimination, we can use them in neutral gender.

Let’s revise this content within the {Form} section. Take a look at the {Example} section that shows its use within a context.

Exercise

License