Usually, but it depends on cultural context. For example, where I'm from (West Ireland), the term "Lads" is often used for everyone regardless of gender. One m

Usually, but it depends on cultural context. For example, where I'm from (West Ireland), the term "Lads" is often used for everyone regardless of gender. One might hear a lady say she's "Going out with the lads" when describing a night out, with even a mostly female group of companions. Basically, we should try to not use language which excludes others, but in some cases the person is actually using gender-neutral language from their culture and does not intend to exclude anyone.