LAST week's post on "guys" inspired some thoughts on the tricky landscape of gendered language. I mused that feminism and social solidarity between young men and women had made it a badge of honor for women to be addressed as "dude" or "you guys".

But extending male terms to women hasn't always been a feminist victory. In the history of English and other languages, men have magnanimously declared that grammatically or semantically masculine words could include women. In grammar, the traditional view is that the male pronoun is sex-neutral in sentences like "Everyone should find his seat and take out his notebook." And the scope of "man", "mankind", Jefferson's "all men are created equal", it was explained to women, included them too. But this has been a cause for feminist chagrin in modern times. Feminists and those hoping to avoid annoying people along these lines cautiously opt for "people" or "humankind" in place of "man" and "mankind".

More specific terms have been contentious too. At one point in history, "policemen" and "firemen" were not controversial because there were no policewomen and firewomen. Now, "police officers" and "firefighters" are the generic plurals of the day. But the conversion to sex-neutral terms has been patchy and inconsistent. The lowest enlisted ranks in America's navy are "seamen"—regardless of the sex of the sailors in question. The same applies to "airmen" in America's air force. Britiain's Royal Navy has only "seamen"—but the Royal Air Force has "airwomen" as well as "airmen".

Other traditional terms are in similar disarray. Female Hollywood types are "actresses", uncontroversially, but many women of the serious New York stage call themselves "actors". No self-respecting female writer of verse calls herself a "poetess" anymore. "Waitress" is holding its own against "server", but "stewardess" has quickly yielded to "flight attendant". "Hostess" is harmless but "mistress" is tainted.

Other countries have gone through the same contortions, especially if gender is mandatorily marked on nouns. The French Academy insists that a woman can and indeed must be le ministre, but many politicians disagree and ignore the body's advice. German has awkwardly capitalised StudentInnen ("-innen" is the feminine plural suffix) around campuses to refer to male and female students. Some Spanish-speakers use "-@s" as a generic plural ending, cleverly combining masculine "-os" and feminine "-as", with the only downside being that it's ugly and awkward.

In other words, the situation is chaotic and as yet unsettled, in English and in other languages. Johnson's best advice is that you should try to be stylish and accurate at the same time, but above all, try to show that whatever you choose, you're doing your best to give little offence. Context is king.