Are we ladies or women?

Most call us guys now and that doesn’t bother me at all
Prefer ladies to woman Wouldn’t want to be called woman
So welcome to the meeting, women! doesn't sound good at all
Whereas ‘welcome to the meeting ladies’ sounds much better
If it was very informal, maybe welcome guys is preferable to women but ladies sounds best

I don't mind Ladies, Guys , Women or Girls.
I agree that life's too short to be unnecessarily offended.
Probably I prefer "ladies" as someone said it's more polite or genteel.
My friends are "the girls". Everyone realises that it's a figure of speech at our age.
🤣🤣🤣

I prefer 'women' to 'ladies', but am not offended by either. As I've got older, I am called a 'lady' more often than I used to be, but I don't think I've got any more ladylike😀

"Hello Everyone/All", "Good Morning Colleagues/Team/Group" etc, it's quite easy avoiding any ladies/women issue

I prefer “ladies” in a group greeting as the word “women” has been appropriated by the trans community!

No doubt “transladies” will be along shortly…

I use the term lady in a deferential way, referring to someone I don't know. I don't particularly like the collective ladies it just smacks of twee and quaint, although I can see women sounds a bit bald, not in the lacking of hair sense, just somewhat blunt! Nevertheless, that's what most of us are unless of course one is married to a Sir. I'd never call out anyone else for using whatever their preference is though, it's just not mine. I just prefer plain old men and women. A friend of mine was inclined to say, when our husbands were golfing together "I wonder how the boys are getting on?" so much so, I felt inclined to say on one occasion, "boys are you having a laugh? that ship sailed well over half a century ago". Collectively, I don't mind "guys" it may be colloquial but I'm just so used to children and grandchildren using it when talking to both of us, by extension I don't mind it at all from waiters or anyone else who happens to be serving us.

I really don’t mind. I’m just happy to not be ignored!

I went to an event not long ago where the usual opening speech of Ladies & gentlemen was replaced with Men & women. It sounded so ungainly plus we females were related to second in line, behind the men.

In a group I’m happy with ladies, describing myself I’m a woman. I do dislike being called a guy, if not enough to make a fuss about it. A girl? That was along while ago but yes, I have talked about being out with the girls.

Females will always be “Ladies” whether it’s PC or not, an informal mixed group I often use “Folks” of if they are younger “guys”.

I really can’t imagine when I would use “Hello or Good Evening Women”

No matter which term is used there will always be someone ready to feel aggrieved.

We still talk about 'the girls' when it's a friends gathering. We talk about DH going out with 'the boys'. Some of them have been friends since we were very young, so I suppose it has just never occurred to us to change it.

BlueBelle

Most call us guys now and that doesn’t bother me at all
Prefer ladies to woman Wouldn’t want to be called woman
So welcome to the meeting, women! doesn't sound good at all
Whereas ‘welcome to the meeting ladies’ sounds much better
If it was very informal, maybe welcome guys is preferable to women but ladies sounds best

I agree.

As I've said on here before, I don't mind what people call me as long as it's kindly meant.

I call myself a woman but if anyone addresses me as lady it doesn't bother me . But if I am with a group of woman when we part I do say goodbye ladies as goodbye woman wouldn't sound right .

Women not woman

I'm a woman, used to be a girl and won't ever become a lady, I'm not fussed about what others use but do we need to use anything? What's wrong with just saying "good evening", Good morning " "welcome" etc there's lots of different ways of greeting people without using gender. I used to lead training and conferences but I don't think I ever used ladies and gentlemen, it sounds archaic. It doesn't take much thought to come up with an alternative way of addressing a group.

We could just now refer to everyone as people although the singular person is a bit rude. This lady just said the weather was fine. This person just said the weather was fine. This woman just said the weather was fine. This sentient being said the weather was fine. Oh, dear, me!

It's all about context. agree that 'ladies' works well as a plural '..going to the ladies.... welcome ladies and gentleman...this is for the ladies...' i use girls for my friends. Girls'night out. But I as singular am a woman, not a lady unless it's a child referring to a stranger as ' that lady' .....
It's all in the nuance, relationship and context.

I'm not fussed. I've been called, lass, me wench, bab, good lady, my girl and in a group as lady. Non of them were offensive or condescending in my view. There's far more important things in life to get worked up about.

I think I am happier with being addressed as ladies or girls. Personally addressing a group of women as guys is irritating but I wouldn’t be offended just pleased not to be ignored!

OldFrill

"Hello Everyone/All", "Good Morning Colleagues/Team/Group" etc, it's quite easy avoiding any ladies/women issue

Yes, it's all contextual. I prefer women on the whole as deep down I feel a woman not a lady.

"Afternoon, folks, welcome to the...."

"could all the women in the audience raise their hands if they agree with the proposition" not
"could all the ladies in the audience raise their hands if they agree with the proposition"

On the other hand, "come on ladies, its off to the xxxxx"

Girls is for us to use between us as women, for me. "We're off for a girls night"

We've chosen that, not for men to use because of the history of "girls" being used as a diminutive really as bullying putting down in work and social situations in the past.

foxie48

I'm a woman, used to be a girl and won't ever become a lady, I'm not fussed about what others use but do we need to use anything? What's wrong with just saying "good evening", Good morning " "welcome" etc there's lots of different ways of greeting people without using gender. I used to lead training and conferences but I don't think I ever used ladies and gentlemen, it sounds archaic. It doesn't take much thought to come up with an alternative way of addressing a group.

Thanks foxie for expressing this so well.

I have women friends. We are in our seventies, we aren’t girls. I dislike being addressed as lady /ladies but wouldn’t get in a stress about it. Except I object to David49 stating “Females will always be ladies whether it’s PC or not”. Who appointed you as the man to instruct women? Thats just the kind of patronising nonsense that had many women rejecting ladies as a form of address

I enjoy my grandchildren starting a plan with “hey guys, why don’t we ……”

I’ll add, I’ve no issue with girls as a way of describing a good night out with friends

Addressing a group of women as women ‘ Good Morning women’ sounds ridiculous.
If ladies sounds wrong too, tho I can’t see women’s groups objecting to it anyway, there aren’t many other words to use that don’t sound a bit weird.
I don’t like ‘guys’ as we aren’t, and ‘folks’ sounds a bit homespun so I guess saying ‘Good Morning everyone’ is the best alternative.

I think dragonfly was addressing a women's group.

I don’t mind either, but as a result of the post I’ve thought about this, and on reflection I don’t like either the terms woman or female, as they are both derivatives of the male term - I’m more than a ‘man with a womb’, I think. At least lady is a unique term.