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(LifeSiteNews) – The Merriam-Webster Dictionary now includes “gender identity” in the definition of female.
The change, which apparently took place in 2020, became more widely known after conservative commentator Matt Walsh brought attention to it with a tweet he published on Tuesday.
“It was bound to happen. Merriam-Webster has changed its dictionary definition of ‘female’ to appease the trans activists,” Walsh wrote.
It was bound to happen. Merriam-Webster has changed its dictionary definition of “female” to appease the trans activists. pic.twitter.com/qWnslvPjSd
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) July 19, 2022
The venerable American dictionary, first published by Noah Webster in 1828 and purchased by Merriam Co. in 1843, now lists among the definitions of female “having a gender identity that is the opposite of male.” A similar change took place within the dictionary’s definition of “male,” with the entry now including “having a gender identity that is the opposite of female.”
Merriam-Webster has a history of modifying definitions to fit leftist narratives. In October 2020, the dictionary changed the definition of “sexual preference,” to please homosexuals, stating that the term was “outdated” and “offensive.” The change followed a rant by Hawaii Democrat U.S. Senator Maisie Hirono against pro-lifers during Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation hearings. The Supreme Court Justice had used the expression.
Merriam-Webster also changed the definition of a “trans” woman that year, stating that a “trans” woman, or a gender confused man, is “an adult who was born male but whose gender identity is female.” The alteration came shortly after the dictionary changed the definition of racism; a young black woman had asked the company to make the dictionary definition reflect “a systematic oppression upon a group of people.”
READ: Even feminists are facing prison time for questioning transgender ideology
The definition of the word “woman” has been a matter of public discourse in recent months. In March, Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson could not define what a woman was when asked by Republican U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. Last week, Fatima Gross Graves, the president of the National Women’s Law Center, could not define what a woman is after being asked in a Senate hearing. Also in a Senate hearing last week, a law professor accused Republican U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley of “transphobia” for asking if only women can get pregnant.
READ: President of women’s rights nonprofit cannot tell US congressman what a woman is
Walsh recently released a documentary on transgenderism called What is a Woman? Walsh also took part in a recent Twitter exchange with Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling over the issue of gender confusion. Rowling reminded Walsh in the exchange that gender activists make threats against women who disagree with gender ideology, including physical threats of violence.
LifeSite reached out to Merriam-Webster for comment but has yet to receive a response.