girl, woman, female

女性(じょせい)	Female – a biological term

女人(おんなのひと)	Woman – a social term, unlike the biological term 女性.

嬢(じょう)	Girl. Has the implication of an eligible single daughter of a rich family. お嬢さん。 A flattering word used when picking up girls. Up to 20 years old, but if you’re 70 you can use it to a single 40-year-old woman.

乙女(おとめ)	A 12-19 years old girl. Emphasis is on purity or virginity.

女子(おんなのこ)	A girl, 11-19ish, doesn’t matter if she is a virgin.

女子(じょし)	PREFIX used about women from first grade through college. Used to refer to female students as a group: “女子 line up on the left side of the class, 男子 (danshi) line up on the right side.” You wouldn’t say, “She’s a 女子.”