This question has been used as a "gotcha" by opponents of gender theory and gender reassignment. It's not an issue I'm particularly passionate about, but this question did stump me and I've spent a lot of time thinking about it.
Most dictionary definitions of woman define it essentially as an adult human female. Female, being a sex, would cause this definition to make it so that trans-women aren't technically women, and many people perceive that as a problem. But I, and my social circle, has been unable to think of a inclusive definition that still made sense.
Here are some of the forms of answers I've seen to this question:
1. Answers that include the word in its own definition. "A woman is someone who identifies as a woman" etc.
2. Answers that define by exclusion "A woman is a gender that is not man or non-binary" etc.
3. Answers that categorize instead of define. "A woman is a social construct."
4. Avoidance. "It's not for me to define what a woman is".
There's a lot of smart, reasonable people here. How do you tackle this problem? What's your answer?
Most dictionary definitions of woman define it essentially as an adult human female. Female, being a sex, would cause this definition to make it so that trans-women aren't technically women, and many people perceive that as a problem. But I, and my social circle, has been unable to think of a inclusive definition that still made sense.
Here are some of the forms of answers I've seen to this question:
1. Answers that include the word in its own definition. "A woman is someone who identifies as a woman" etc.
2. Answers that define by exclusion "A woman is a gender that is not man or non-binary" etc.
3. Answers that categorize instead of define. "A woman is a social construct."
4. Avoidance. "It's not for me to define what a woman is".
There's a lot of smart, reasonable people here. How do you tackle this problem? What's your answer?