He was an orphan and lived with his uncle. In
2019
Read the sentence and identify the gender of the word “orphan”.
Sentence: He was an orphan and lived with his uncle.
- A.
Masculine Gender
- B.
Common Gender
- C.
Feminine Gender
- D.
Neuter Gender
Attempted by 48 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Correct answer: Common Gender
Word-level gender: The noun “orphan” can refer to either a boy or a girl whose parents are no longer alive.
Sentence context: The pronoun “He” tells us that this particular person is male, but the question asks the gender category of the word “orphan” itself.
Conclusion: Because “orphan” can be used for both male and female persons, it is a common-gender noun.