■ noun
1》 Grammar a class (usually masculine, feminine, common, or neuter) into which nouns and pronouns are placed in some languages, distinguished by a particular inflection.
↘the property of belonging to such a class.
2》 the state of being male or female (chiefly in cultural or social contexts).
↘the members of one or other sex: differences between the ~s.
Derivatives
~ed adjective
Origin
ME: from OFr. gendre (mod. genre ), based on L. genus 'birth, family, nation'.
Usage
Although the words ~ and sex both have the sense ‘the state of being male or female’, they are typically used in different ways: sex tends to refer to biological differences, while ~ tends to refer to cultural or social ones.