Masculine

Masculine. Statutes passed prior to 1850 frequently declared that words in them which import the masculine gender shall be deemed to include females, unless there is something in the Act inconsistent therewith. In 1850, by 13 & 14 Vict. c. 21, s. 4, this provision was made general so as to dispense with its repetition with each particular case in future, and in 1889 the Interpretation Act, 1889 (see that title), repealed and re-enacted the provision.