suffixes (end-Sylows) for female characters

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-ess
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-ess
suff.
Female: lioness.
[Middle English -esse, from Old French, from Late Latin -issa, from Greek.]

Usage Note: When used in occupational terms like waitress, stewardess, and sculptress,
the feminine suffix -ess is sometimes considered sexist and demeaning
because it gratuitously calls attention to gender.

With some nouns, like poetess or sculptress, the feminine form may be taken
to imply that the task somehow differs when performed by a woman,
or that it is by default the realm of men.

With others, such as seamstress, the feminine form may be taken to
suggest the occupation is characteristically feminine.

In some cases, such as sculptor,
the term with masculine gender has become effectively neuter,
applying naturally to either sex.

In other cases, gender-neutral terms like server and flight attendant have been created, finessing 
the problem of using an originally masculine noun to refer to either sex.

A few specialized examples persist in fields in which the sex of the referent is relevant,
sometimes for historical reasons, including chiefess in anthropology,
goddess in history and literature,
and lioness in biology.

Other cases, like webmistress, represent arch reclaimings of the -ess suffix,
but these are whimsical or ironic exceptions.

· Many nouns ending in -or or -er are commonly used of women now and should be
considered standard.

In our 1997 survey, 95 percent of the Usage Panel approved
The gallery is exhibiting work of sculptor Barbara Hepworth, and in our 2016 survey,
88 percent accepted Meryl Streep was one of five actors to receive an Oscar
nomination for leading woman this year.

It should be noted that 85 percent of the panelists also accepted a similar sentence with actresses,
indicating that in some cases, despite the prevalence of gender-neutral terms like actor,
the -ess form maintains its acceptability.
However, when discussing mixed-sex groups, actors is preferred over actors and actresses:
Ninety-three percent of the panelists accepted Meryl Streep was one of four actors
presented with honorary doctorates yesterday,
together with Robert Duvall, Helen Mirren, and Javier Bardem,
whereas only 67 percent accepted a similar sentence with actors and actresses
in place of actors. See Usage Note at man.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language,
Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton 
Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
All rights reserved.

-ess
suffix forming nouns
indicating a female: waitress; lioness.
[via Old French from Late Latin -issa, from Greek]

Usage: The suffix -ess in such words as poetess, authoress is now almost invariably regarded as 
disparaging or extremely old-fashioned; a gender-neutral term poet, author is preferred
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 
1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ess (ɛs)

n.
1. the letter S, s.
2. something shaped like an S.
[1530–40]
-ess
a suffix forming distinctively feminine nouns: countess; goddess; lioness.
[Middle English -esse from Old French from Late Latin -issa from Greek]
usage: Since at least the 14th century, English has borrowed nouns with this feminine suffix from
French (French -esse) and also applied that ending to existing words, most frequently agent nouns in 
-or or -er. Some of the earliest borrowings - noble or religious titles - still flourish, as 
princess, duchess, abbess, and prioress. The use of -ess words has declined sharply in the latter 
half of the 20th century. Among those words that are rarely used or are either rejected or 
discouraged in modern American English are ambassadress, ancestress, authoress, poetess, sculptress, 
and stewardess. Some nouns in -ess are still current: actress (but some women prefer actor); 
adventuress; enchantress; governess (only in its child-care sense); heiress (largely in journalistic 
writing); hostess (but women who conduct radio and television programs are hosts); millionairess; 
mistress (except in the sense of expert); murderess; postmistress (not in official U.S. government 
use); seamstress; seductress; sorceress; temptress; and waitress. Jewess and Negress are rarely used 
today and are generally considered offensive. See also -enne, -ette, -trix.

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 
1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

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-enne
a personal noun suffix occurring in loanwords from French, where it forms feminine nouns 
corresponding to masculine nouns ending in -en (comedienne, doyenne); on this model, of very limited 
productivity in English, forming distinctively feminine nouns from words ending in -an: equestrienne.

usage: The English words that end in -enne do not usu. carry an implication of inferiority. Many 
people, however, prefer to drop the feminine forms and to use the masculine terms for all. See also 

-ess, -ette, -trix.

-ette

suffix forming nouns
1. small: cigarette; kitchenette.
2. female: majorette; suffragette.
3. (esp in trade names) imitation: Leatherette.
[from French, feminine of -et]


-trix
-trix
suff.
1. A female that is connected with a specified thing: testatrix.
2. A geometric point, line, or surface: directrix.
[Middle English, from Latin -trīx, feminine of -tor, n. suff.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton 
Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All 
rights reserved.
-trix
suffix forming nouns
indicating a feminine agent, corresponding to nouns ending in -tor: executrix.
[from Latin]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 
1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

-trix
a suffix occurring in loanwords from Latin, where it formed feminine nouns or adjectives 
corresponding to agent nouns ending in -tor; on this model, -trix is used in English to form 
feminine nouns (aviatrix; executrix) and geometrical terms denoting straight lines (directrix).

Also, -trice.
[from Latin -trīx, s. -trīc-]

usage: Most English nouns in -trix have dropped from general use and occur rarely or not at all in 
present-day English. The forms in -tor are applied to both men and women. When relevant, sex is 
specified with the generic term: Amelia Earhart was a pioneer woman aviator. Some terms remain in 
usually jocular use, e.g. editrix. The word dominatrix has connotations that cannot be otherwise 
expressed. Legal documents still use administratrix, executrix, inheritrix, and the like, but these 
forms too are giving way to the -tor forms. See also -enne, -ess, -ette.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 
1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.