The Washington Post newspaper postulated that English should have male
and female nouns, and readers were asked to assign a gender to nouns
of their choice and explain their reason.
The best submissions:
COPIER - female, because once turned off, it takes a while to warm up,
because it is an effective reproductive device when the right buttons
are pushed, and because it can wreak havoc when the wrong buttons are
pushed.
SWISS ARMY KNIFE - male, because even though it appears useful for a
wide variety of work, it spends most of its time just opening bottles.
KIDNEYS - female, because they always go to the bathroom in pairs.
TYRE - male, because it goes bald and is often over-inflated.
HOT AIR BALLOON - male, because to get it to go anywhere you have to
light a fire under it .. and, of course, there's the hot air part.
SPONGES - female, because they are soft and squeezable and retain water.
WEB PAGE - female, because it is always getting hit on.
SHOE - male, because it is usually unpolished, with its tongue hanging
out.
ZIPLOC BAG - male, because they hold everything in, but you can always
see right through them.
SUBWAY - male, because it uses the same old lines to pick people up.
HOURGLASS - female, because over time, the weight shifts to the
bottom.
HAMMER - male, because it hasn't evolved much over the last 5,000
years, but it's still handy to have around.
and female nouns, and readers were asked to assign a gender to nouns
of their choice and explain their reason.
The best submissions:
COPIER - female, because once turned off, it takes a while to warm up,
because it is an effective reproductive device when the right buttons
are pushed, and because it can wreak havoc when the wrong buttons are
pushed.
SWISS ARMY KNIFE - male, because even though it appears useful for a
wide variety of work, it spends most of its time just opening bottles.
KIDNEYS - female, because they always go to the bathroom in pairs.
TYRE - male, because it goes bald and is often over-inflated.
HOT AIR BALLOON - male, because to get it to go anywhere you have to
light a fire under it .. and, of course, there's the hot air part.
SPONGES - female, because they are soft and squeezable and retain water.
WEB PAGE - female, because it is always getting hit on.
SHOE - male, because it is usually unpolished, with its tongue hanging
out.
ZIPLOC BAG - male, because they hold everything in, but you can always
see right through them.
SUBWAY - male, because it uses the same old lines to pick people up.
HOURGLASS - female, because over time, the weight shifts to the
bottom.
HAMMER - male, because it hasn't evolved much over the last 5,000
years, but it's still handy to have around.
