poetess

The word "poetess" was used for a female poet, a woman who writes poems. It grew as a feminine form of "poet" in earlier English. Today, it is usually seen as dated, and many writers avoid it. Most people now simply use "poet" for anyone, since naming the gender often feels unnecessary and can suggest an old way of thinking.

Think of Maya Angelou or Sylvia Plath: they are almost always called poets, not poetesses. You may still see the word in older books, especially from the 19th and early 20th centuries, but in modern use it can sound old-fashioned or mildly condescending. It is a bit like saying "doctress" for a female doctor: the form exists, but it no longer sounds natural in most contexts.

"Poetess" is a dated term for a female poet. For centuries, English often used separate words for men and women in different roles, so pairings like actor/actress and poet/poetess became common. This reflected older social ideas that placed more weight on gender and often treated women's work as a separate category. Because of that history, "poetess" can carry the sense that a woman's poetry should be marked off from a man's, as if the writing itself belongs in a different class.

The term became common in earlier literary writing and was often used when women poets were discussed as a group apart from men. Over time, especially through the 20th century and into the 21st, that labeling fell out of favor as English moved toward more gender-neutral job and role names.

Today, most writers, critics, and readers prefer the word "poet" for everyone. This avoids drawing attention to gender when it is not important and fits modern usage better. You may still find "poetess" in older literature, in historical discussion, or when someone is deliberately using an old-fashioned tone. In most current writing, though, "poet" is the more natural and widely accepted choice.