PSA: The third person pronoun 'they' is both plural and singular. It has been used in a singular sense since the 14th century, even before singular 'you' was used. The pronoun 'they' is now used to refer to one of three things: 1. A group of two or more things. 2. An individual of unknown gender. 3. Most recently, but because language changes and evolves alongside its culture and society, an individual with a neutral gender or gender outside of the gender binary.
“Singular they has become the pronoun of choice to replace he and she in cases where the gender of the antecedent – the word the pronoun refers to – is unknown, irrelevant, or nonbinary, or where gender needs to be concealed. It’s the word we use for sentences like Everyone loves his mother. But that’s nothing new. The Oxford English Dictionary traces singular they back to 1375, where it appears in the medieval romance William and the Werewolf.” - A brief history of singular ‘they’, by the Oxford English Dictionary.
“We will note that they has been in consistent use as a singular pronoun since the late 1300s; that the development of singular they mirrors the development of the singular you from the plural you, yet we don’t complain that singular you is ungrammatical; and that regardless of what detractors say, nearly everyone uses the singular they in casual conversation and often in formal writing. They is taking on a new use, however: as a pronoun of choice for someone who doesn’t identify as either male or female. This is a different use than the traditional singular they, which is used to refer to a person whose gender isn’t known or isn’t important in the context, as in the example above. The new use of they is direct, and it is for a person whose gender is known or knowable, but who does not identify as male or female. If I were introducing a friend who preferred to use the pronoun they, I would say, “This is my friend, Jay. I met them at work.” If you’re someone who has a binary gender (that is, who identifies as male or female) and you’ve never encountered the nonbinary they before, it may feel a little weird. Or you may think it’s unnecessary. You may be confused by all the new terminology (though there’s help out there for you). Yet we’ve been searching for a nonbinary pronoun for quite a while now. There have always been people who didn’t conform to an expected gender expression, or who seemed to be neither male nor female. But we’ve struggled to find the right language to describe these people—and in particular, the right pronouns. In the 17th century, English laws concerning inheritance sometimes referred to people who didn’t fit a gender binary using the pronoun it, which, while dehumanizing, was conceived of as being the most grammatically fit answer to gendered pronouns around then. Adopting the already-singular they is vastly preferable.” - Singular 'They’, by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
“Something comparable is happening today with the third-person plural pronoun they. Like you, but for different reasons, they has become a singular pronoun with two different uses that fill two gaps in the English language. First use of singular they First, they is used when the gender of the referent (the noun to which the pronoun refers) is unknown or unimportant. This use avoids clumsy workarounds such as he/she and his or her…. While grammar prescriptivists may object to the use of a plural pronoun with a singular meaning, this is a widely accepted usage that dates back centuries and has finally been recognized by most style guides. Singular they is colloquial, convenient, and concise, and it is an option that English learners can and should be taught. Second use of singular they The second use of singular they is more contemporary. Some people do not identify with the pronouns he or she. Many nonbinary people use the pronouns they/them/their. It is a sign of respectful and inclusive language to use people’s identified pronouns. They can also be used for people whose gender and identified pronouns are unknown rather than assuming he/him/his or she/her/hers pronouns simply based on someone’s name or appearance. Note that plural verb forms are always used with they even when referring to one person, as they are with you (e.g., they are and you are and not *they is or *you is). Making ESL/EFL more inclusive Teaching English learners to understand the importance of using people’s identified pronouns is part of a broader project of making ESL/EFL more inclusive so that the language we teach is better aligned with the lived reality of the millions of users of English around the world. In some teaching situations, it may be better to wait until a context for singular they arises before pointing its use out to students. In other situations, it might be taught as part of basic instruction in pronouns. In either case, it is important for teaching materials not to assume that there are only two possible singular pronouns for people, he or she.” - Singular ‘they’: teaching a changing language, by the Cambridge Dictionary.
Arcane Paws & Tales
RE: they/them pronouns
PSA: The third person pronoun 'they' is both plural and singular. It has been used in a singular sense since the 14th century, even before singular 'you' was used. The pronoun 'they' is now used to refer to one of three things:
1. A group of two or more things.
2. An individual of unknown gender.
3. Most recently, but because language changes and evolves alongside its culture and society, an individual with a neutral gender or gender outside of the gender binary.
“Singular they has become the pronoun of choice to replace he and she in cases where the gender of the antecedent – the word the pronoun refers to – is unknown, irrelevant, or nonbinary, or where gender needs to be concealed. It’s the word we use for sentences like Everyone loves his mother.
But that’s nothing new. The Oxford English Dictionary traces singular they back to 1375, where it appears in the medieval romance William and the Werewolf.” - A brief history of singular ‘they’, by the Oxford English Dictionary.
“We will note that they has been in consistent use as a singular pronoun since the late 1300s; that the development of singular they mirrors the development of the singular you from the plural you, yet we don’t complain that singular you is ungrammatical; and that regardless of what detractors say, nearly everyone uses the singular they in casual conversation and often in formal writing.
They is taking on a new use, however: as a pronoun of choice for someone who doesn’t identify as either male or female. This is a different use than the traditional singular they, which is used to refer to a person whose gender isn’t known or isn’t important in the context, as in the example above. The new use of they is direct, and it is for a person whose gender is known or knowable, but who does not identify as male or female. If I were introducing a friend who preferred to use the pronoun they, I would say, “This is my friend, Jay. I met them at work.”
If you’re someone who has a binary gender (that is, who identifies as male or female) and you’ve never encountered the nonbinary they before, it may feel a little weird. Or you may think it’s unnecessary. You may be confused by all the new terminology (though there’s help out there for you). Yet we’ve been searching for a nonbinary pronoun for quite a while now.
There have always been people who didn’t conform to an expected gender expression, or who seemed to be neither male nor female. But we’ve struggled to find the right language to describe these people—and in particular, the right pronouns. In the 17th century, English laws concerning inheritance sometimes referred to people who didn’t fit a gender binary using the pronoun it, which, while dehumanizing, was conceived of as being the most grammatically fit answer to gendered pronouns around then. Adopting the already-singular they is vastly preferable.” - Singular 'They’, by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
“Something comparable is happening today with the third-person plural pronoun they. Like you, but for different reasons, they has become a singular pronoun with two different uses that fill two gaps in the English language.
First use of singular they
First, they is used when the gender of the referent (the noun to which the pronoun refers) is unknown or unimportant. This use avoids clumsy workarounds such as he/she and his or her…. While grammar prescriptivists may object to the use of a plural pronoun with a singular meaning, this is a widely accepted usage that dates back centuries and has finally been recognized by most style guides. Singular they is colloquial, convenient, and concise, and it is an option that English learners can and should be taught.
Second use of singular they
The second use of singular they is more contemporary. Some people do not identify with the pronouns he or she. Many nonbinary people use the pronouns they/them/their. It is a sign of respectful and inclusive language to use people’s identified pronouns. They can also be used for people whose gender and identified pronouns are unknown rather than assuming he/him/his or she/her/hers pronouns simply based on someone’s name or appearance. Note that plural verb forms are always used with they even when referring to one person, as they are with you (e.g., they are and you are and not *they is or *you is).
Making ESL/EFL more inclusive
Teaching English learners to understand the importance of using people’s identified pronouns is part of a broader project of making ESL/EFL more inclusive so that the language we teach is better aligned with the lived reality of the millions of users of English around the world. In some teaching situations, it may be better to wait until a context for singular they arises before pointing its use out to students. In other situations, it might be taught as part of basic instruction in pronouns. In either case, it is important for teaching materials not to assume that there are only two possible singular pronouns for people, he or she.” - Singular ‘they’: teaching a changing language, by the Cambridge Dictionary.
2 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 5