(MENAFN) With a recent update, Cambridge Dictionary appears to have entered the gender wars, expanding its definition of "woman" to include "an adult who lives and identifies as a female" even though they "may have been stated to have a different sex at birth."

In a tweet on Monday, Manhattan Institute fellow Chris Rufo blasted the adjustment, sparking a firestorm of outrage.

The conservative influencer shared a screenshot of the new definition, which appears on the dictionary's website after the more generally used term of "mature female human being" but before the 'informal' definition of "a wife or female sexual partner."

Daily Caller journalist, Diana Glebova, replied with the observation that the entrance of 'man' had received the same handling, publishing a screenshot of Cambridge’s definition: “an adult who lives and identifies as male even though they may have been said to have a different sex at birth.”  

Another commenter noted that Cambridge considered the usage of the term "female" to refer to women and girls to be "offensive."

While some users attempted to defend the change by claiming that dictionaries reflected how words were commonly used or pointing out that Cambridge hadn't deleted the original definition, many mocked the move, comparing it to Orwellian 'newspeak,' a totalitarian government's initiative to control thought by limiting the range of words in use.

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