Ganderess

/ˈɡændərɪs/ noun

Definition

A female gander; a goose (the female of the species).

Etymology

From 'gander' (male goose) plus the suffix '-ess,' which creates female nouns. Largely archaic, as modern English simply uses 'goose' for the female.

Kelly Says

English used to add '-ess' to tons of male animal names to make female versions—'ganderess' for gander, 'lioness' for lion—but we've mostly stopped except for a few, showing how language naturally simplifies over time!

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