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Marked and Unmarked Terms

Have you ever wondered why some words are deemed as the ‘default’? Why do we use certain words more than others? This all relates to using marked and unmarked terms, which is the topic of this article!

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Marked and Unmarked Terms

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Have you ever wondered why some words are deemed as the ‘default’? Why do we use certain words more than others? This all relates to using marked and unmarked terms, which is the topic of this article!

We will begin by exploring the definition of marked and unmarked terms and how they relate to gender. This will explain how different genders are represented. We will also look at some other ways marked and unmarked terms can be used to differentiate between things.

Marked and Unmarked Terms Definition

As you might have guessed, there are two definitions we need to take into account here, but they are closely linked. Let's start with 'marked terms':

Marked terms are words that are changed in some way (e.g. different affixes added) to express a different meaning.

On the other hand:

Unmarked terms are not changed, so they are often referred to as the ‘default’. These terms are usually realised as pairs, for example, work (default verb) vs worked (past tense verb).

Fun fact: The concept of 'markedness' derives from the work of linguists Nikolai Trubetzkoy and Roman Jakobson. It was a way to characterise binary oppositions.

Marked and Unmarked Terms in Gender

The language we have used - and continue to use - to represent different genders carries an unfair bias towards men. Even humans are collectively referred to as ‘mankind’. Marked and unmarked terms have been used to distinguish between words associated with men and women. The words associated with men are typically seen as the default terms, reflecting men's power in society and implying that we only change our language if we refer to terms associated with anyone other than men. It means that men and things men do are seen as the norm, whereas people who are not men deviate from these supposed 'norms'.

It could be argued that even the terms ‘man/men’ and 'woman/women’ themselves are unmarked and marked, respectively, portraying men as the dominant default and women as subordinate and different from what is normal.

Marked and Unmarked Terms Marked and Unmarked Terms and Gender StudySmarterTraditional gender roles have significantly influenced the language we use to describe the different genders.

Marked and Unmarked Terms Gender Examples

In the pairs of terms, the unmarked terms often refer to men, whereas the marked terms refer to women:

Unmarked Term

Marked Term

Actor

Actress

Waiter

Waitress

Hero

Heroine

Comedian

Comedienne

Notice how the marked terms have suffixes, such as -ess, added to change the meaning and make the term feminine.

In some cases, unmarked terms can be used to refer to both men and women. But, the marked term will refer only to the female. For example:

  • ‘Actor’ can often refer to both men and women; it is more commonly used to refer to both in today’s society than in the past. However, when ‘actress’ is used, it refers only to women (you'd never hear the phrase 'male actress' after all!).

The same can also be true for animals. For example, the word ‘lion’ can be used to refer to both male and female lions, whereas ‘lioness’ is used only for females.

Sometimes, the word 'female' could also be placed in front of an unmarked term to indicate the gender difference. For example:

  • Female doctor instead of doctor.
  • Female lawyer instead of lawyer.

This implies that, unlike men, women are not usually seen in such roles. It is assumed that men are in these positions, so it is more unusual or surprising if a woman happens to be too. Thus, they are referred to as 'female' not to be mistaken for a man in a male-dominated profession.

Marked and Unmarked Terms Marked and Unmarked Terms Examples StudySmarterReferring to a woman who is a manager as a 'manageress' is an example of a gendered marked term.

Gender-neutral terms

It is important to note that, in today’s society, more gender-neutral terms are being used - these can refer to anyone. This is more inclusive towards all genders and limits the need to change the language and deviate from the ‘norm’ to fit anyone who is not male. For example:

  • Instead of either postman or postwoman, more people are opting for the gender-neutral ‘postal worker’, instead of policeman or policewoman, people can use ‘police officer', and instead of fireman, we can say 'firefighter' instead.

Marked terms that refer to men

In unusual cases, some marked terms are used to refer to men. For example, the term ‘nurse’ is usually used to refer to women. However, we know that there are also nurses that are men. The difference is, when referring to them, we often use ‘male nurse’. In this Case, it is a marked term as the word ‘male’ is placed in front of ‘nurse’ to indicate the gender of the person. This can also be applied to animals. For example, the word ‘cow’ can be used to refer to either males or females, but ‘bull’ refers only to males.

Doctors and Nurses, Marked and Unmarked Terms, StudySmarter'Male nurse' and 'female doctor' are both marked terms.

The Relationship Between Marked and Unmarked Terms and Gender

Marked and unmarked terms can carry different connotations, affecting how different genders are perceived in society. The unmarked terms mostly associated with men tend to show men more positively, whereas the marked terms mostly related to women hold negative connotations. This relates to the work of Deborah Tannen. In her essay titled Marked Women, Unmarked Men (1993)1, she argues that women are more likely to be marked by societal expectations than men, suggesting that women are judged more for who they are and what they do.

Tannen (1993) states that 'gender markers pick up extra meanings that reflect common associations with the female gender: not quite serious, often sexual. This is an unfair representation as it highlights the negative stereotypes and inequality faced by women, who are seen as lesser than men as they do not fit the male-centred norms of society.

Master vs mistress

Master is the unmarked term used to refer to a man, whereas mistress is the marked term used to refer to a woman. Unlike master, mistress holds negative connotations as it is often used to refer to a woman in a sexual relationship with a married man.

More marked and unmarked terms examples

Marked terms can be used to indicate differences in Tenses. The infinitive form of a verb is seen as an unmarked term. If you add suffixes to infinitive verbs, they become marked terms, changing the tense. For example:

Unmarked Term

Marked Term

Talk

Talked

Cry

Crying

Want

Wants

Start

Started

Eat

Eating

Marked terms can also be used to show the plural of something/someone. This is usually done by adding the Suffix ‘s’ or ‘es’ at the end of a word. Here are some examples:

  • House (unmarked) → Houses (marked)

  • Elephant (unmarked) → Elephants (marked)

  • Box (unmarked) → Boxes (marked)

  • Brush (unmarked) → Brushes (marked)

Or, the whole word can change its form, for example:

  • Mouse (unmarked) → Mice (marked)

  • Leaf (unmarked) → Leaves (marked)

  • Scarf (unmarked) → Scarves (marked)

  • City (unmarked) → Cities (marked)

Marked and Unmarked Antonyms

Marked and unmarked terms can also be used to show the antonyms of words (the opposite). This is usually done by adding a Prefix to the beginning of a word. Examples of marked and unmarked antonyms include:

  • Predictable (unmarked) vs unpredictable (marked)

  • Approve (unmarked) vs disapprove (marked)

  • Capable (unmarked) vs incapable (marked)

  • Fair (unmarked) vs unfair (marked)

Antonyms without added prefixes or suffixes

In some cases, it is not always easy to spot which antonyms are marked or unmarked as they do not always include apparent differences. According to Adrienne Lehrer, there are different ways to tell whether antonym pairs are marked or unmarked. These include:

  1. Frequency of the words used in different contexts - unmarked terms are the words that are more commonly used. Lehrer gives the following example, using the antonym pairs tall/short and old/young: 'expressions like five feet tall and eight years old are normal, but five feet short and eight years young are odd' (Markedness and Antonymy, 1985)2.

  1. Positivity vs negativity - unmarked terms tend to have more positive connotations, whereas marked terms are more negative. For example, ‘happy’ is unmarked but ‘sad’ is marked.

  1. More vs less - unmarked terms tend to indicate more of something, whereas unmarked terms indicate less. For example, ‘old’ is unmarked as it indicates more age, whereas ‘young’ is marked as it indicates less age.

Marked and Unmarked Terms - Key Takeaways

  • Marked terms are words that are changed in some way (e.g. different affixes added) to express a different meaning, whereas unmarked terms are not changed.
  • Unmarked terms are usually associated with men, whereas marked terms are usually associated with women.
  • Unmarked terms often carry more positive connotations of men, whereas marked terms often carry more negative connotations of women.
  • Marked and unmarked terms are also used to: differentiate Tenses, plurals and antonyms.
  • Antonym pairs that are not obviously identified as marked or unmarked can be identified by: how frequently they are used, how positive or negative they are, if they indicate more or less of something.

References

  1. D. Tannen. Marked Women, Unmarked Men. 1993.
  2. A. Lehrer. Markedness and Antonymy. 1985.

Frequently Asked Questions about Marked and Unmarked Terms

Some examples of marked and unmarked terms in language include:


waiter (unmarked) / waitress (marked)

hero (unmarked) / heroine (marked)

talk (unmarked) / talked (marked)

house (unmarked) / houses (marked)

approve (unmarked) / disapprove (marked)


Marked words have been changed in some way (such as affixes added) and deviate from the norm, whereas unmarked words have not been changed and are seen as the default.

Features of marked words include:

  • added suffixes
  • added prefixes
  • less familiarity/use in certain contexts

(but not all marked terms are obvious)

Marked and unmarked antonyms are pairs of words that are opposites. The unmarked antonym usually contains no prefixes, whereas the marked antonym contains a prefix - e.g., worthy (unmarked) vs unworthy (marked). However, not all antonyms have prefixes (e.g. hot vs cold). In this case, unmarked antonyms can be determined by the following:

- used more frequently

- are more positive

- are used to indicate more of something.

In English, infinitives are usually considered to be unmarked. However, they can sometimes be marked to show differences in tense or voice.

For example:

To hug (unmarked)

To be hugged (marked to show passive voice)

Final Marked and Unmarked Terms Quiz

Marked and Unmarked Terms Quiz - Teste dein Wissen

Question

What is a marked term?

Show answer

Answer

A marked term refers to word that is changed (e.g. added affixes) to convey a different meaning.

Show question

Question

What is an unmarked term?

Show answer

Answer

An unmarked term is a word that has not been changed in any way. It is seen as the default.

Show question

Question

Which word in the following pair is the marked term?


Sock OR socks?

Show answer

Answer

Socks

Show question

Question

Which word in the following pair is the unmarked term?


Running OR run?

Show answer

Answer

Run

Show question

Question

Marked terms are seen as the default.


True or false?

Show answer

Answer

False

Show question

Question

Marked terms are associated mostly with women.


True or false?

Show answer

Answer

True

Show question

Question

Marked terms often carry more positive connotations.


True or false?

Show answer

Answer

False.


They are often deemed as more negative.

Show question

Question

FIll in the blank:


______ verbs are unmarked.

Show answer

Answer

Infinitive

Show question

Question

Who suggested that women are marked in society but men aren't?

Show answer

Answer

Deborah Tannen

Show question

Question

Which of the following words is unmarked?


A. Printed

B. Print

C. Printing

Show answer

Answer

B. Print

Show question

Question

Which of the following words is unmarked?


A. Trusted

B. Trusting

C. Trust

Show answer

Answer

C. Trust

Show question

Question

Unmarked antonyms tend to indicate less of something.


True or false?

Show answer

Answer

False.


Unmarked antonyms usually indicate more of something.

Show question

Question

Marked terms only refer to women.


True or false?

Show answer

Answer

False.


Marked terms can also refer to men, e.g. male nurse.

Show question

Question

If 'lock' is the unmarked antonym in a pair, what is the marked antonym?

Show answer

Answer

Unlock

Show question

Question

The concept of 'markedness' derives from which two linguists?

Show answer

Answer

 Nikolai Trubetzkoy and Roman Jakobson.

Show question

Question

True or false, traditional gender roles have significantly influenced the language used to describe each gender.

Show answer

Answer

True. This is still the case but is slowly starting to change as more gender-neutral terms for different professions etc begin to emerge. 

Show question

Question

What are three examples of gender-neutral terms that have replaced their gendered predecessors?

Show answer

Answer

  • postal worker
  • police officer
  • firefighter

Show question

Question

In the animal world, are marked an unmarked terms each exclusive to one gender of animal?

Show answer

Answer

Not always. In many instances, the unmarked (or default) term refers to the species as a whole as well as the male, and the marked terms refer to the female only, however, occasionally the opposite is true. 

Show question

Question

What's an example of an occupation-based marked term that is used for the male gender?

Show answer

Answer

Male nurse

Show question

Question

According to Deborah Tannen, which gender is more likely to be marked by societal judgement and expectation?

Show answer

Answer

Women

Show question

Question

Give an example of a marked term to describe women that has a negative, sexual connotation. 

Show answer

Answer

Mistress - this is the marked term of the default 'master' but is often used to refer to a woman who has sexual relationships with married men. 

Show question

Question

Does adding a suffix to an infinitive verb make it a marked or unmarked term?

Show answer

Answer

Marked

Show question

Question

Give three examples of words and their marked antonyms.

Show answer

Answer

Any from this list (or any others you can think of) 

  • predictable - unpredictable
  • capable - incapable
  • fair - unfair
  • approve - disapprove

Show question

Question

Which of these words is the unmarked term? 

  • old
  • young

Show answer

Answer

Old 

Show question

Question

Which is more commonly heard and is therefore the unmarked term (default)?

Show answer

Answer

eight years old

Show question

Test your knowledge with multiple choice flashcards

According to Deborah Tannen, which gender is more likely to be marked by societal judgement and expectation?

Does adding a suffix to an infinitive verb make it a marked or unmarked term?

Which of these words is the unmarked term? oldyoung

Next

Flashcards in Marked and Unmarked Terms25

Start learning

What is a marked term?

A marked term refers to word that is changed (e.g. added affixes) to convey a different meaning.

What is an unmarked term?

An unmarked term is a word that has not been changed in any way. It is seen as the default.

Which word in the following pair is the marked term?


Sock OR socks?

Socks

Which word in the following pair is the unmarked term?


Running OR run?

Run

Marked terms are seen as the default.


True or false?

False

Marked terms are associated mostly with women.


True or false?

True

More about Marked and Unmarked Terms

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