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WMC Unspinning the Spin

deus ex machina

this Latin phrase, "god from a machine" (because sometimes in Greek and Roman plays a god arrived onstage by means of a crane to produce a "providential" ending), is appropriate for either sex. However, since deus is in the masculine gender and since it is used most often in masculine contexts, sometimes you may want an alternative: last-minute rescuer, eleventh-hour deliverer; contrived solution.


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Unspinning the Spin: The Women's Media Center Guide to Fair and Accurate Language

By Rosalie Maggio


 

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