For centuries, English speakers have used ‘they’ to refer to a single person when the gender was unknown. Shakespeare and Jane Austen used it long before debates about political correctness began. Yet, some still argue that ‘they’ must only be plural. This isn’t true; grammatically, the singular ‘they’ is well established and widely accepted.
The singular ‘they’ solves a practical problem: English lacks a gender-neutral pronoun that isn’t awkward. Phrases like ‘he or she’ disrupt flow, and using ‘he’ as a default is outdated and exclusionary. ‘They’ fills that gap naturally: ‘Someone left their umbrella’ feels conversational and clear.
In modern usage, ‘they’ is also essential for respecting people who identify outside the gender binary. For these individuals, ‘he’ or ‘she’ may not align with their identity, and ‘they’ offers a respectful alternative. This inclusivity goes beyond grammar—it acknowledges diversity in how people experience and express gender.
Major style guides, including those of the Associated Press, Chicago Manual of Style and Merriam-Webster, now endorse the singular ‘they’. In 2019, Merriam-Webster even named it Word of the Year, highlighting its cultural significance.
Critics often claim the singular ‘they’ causes confusion, but context almost always makes the meaning clear—just as it does for ‘you’, which serves as both singular and plural without issue.
Language evolves to meet the needs of its speakers. The singular ‘they’ is not only grammatically correct but also a sign of English adapting to be more precise, efficient and inclusive. By embracing it, we make our writing clearer and our communication more respectful—two qualities every good writer should value.