§ 1.
In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, unless the context indicates otherwise—
words importing the singular include and apply to several persons, parties, or things;
words importing the plural include the singular;
words importing the masculine gender include the feminine as well;
words used in the present tense include the future as well as the present;
the words “insane” and “insane person” shall include every idiot, insane person, and person non compos mentis;
the words “person” and “whoever” include corporations, companies, associations, firms, partnerships, societies, and joint stock companies, as well as individuals;
“officer” includes any person authorized by law to perform the duties of the office;
“signature” or “subscription” includes a mark when the person making the same intended it as such;
“oath” includes affirmation, and “sworn” includes affirmed;
“writing” includes printing and typewriting and reproductions of visual symbols by photographing, multigraphing, mimeographing, manifolding, or otherwise.
([July 30, 1947, ch. 388], [61 Stat. 633]; [June 25, 1948, ch. 645, § 6], [62 Stat. 859]; [Oct. 31, 1951, ch. 655, § 1], [65 Stat. 710]; [Pub. L. 112–231, § 2(a)], Dec. 28, 2012, [126 Stat. 1619].)