"She" for ships

Question

Hi teachers,Could you please tell me if it's always "she" for ships, vessels, boats and not "he"?  Do you use "she" for airplanes?What other things are addressed as "she" and "he"?Thank you so much.Tinanam

Mr Wordy · Accepted Answer

"she" is traditional for ships, but it's not mandatory. "it" can also be used. "he" is not used for ships. Very small boats (such as rowing boats or punts, for example) are not likely to be called "she".

"she" might be used for a special and cherished plane, but probably not for an anonymous commercial aircraft.

"she" can be used affectionately for other pieces of mechanical equipment, such as cars, steam engines, etc. "she" can also be used for countries where they are perceived as entities that can act and make decisions (rather than geographical areas).

"he" can be used in casual speech for virtually any object, especially an object with which one is interacting. For example, when grappling with a nut, someone might say "let's see if we can get him to turn". The tendency to do this varies greatly between speakers and between dialects. My perception in the UK is that it's more common among older speakers and rural speakers, but I could be wrong.

Anonymous · Answer

Hi Mr. Wordy,

Thanks again for helping me. I understand the general idea now.

I hope you don't mind me asking, when you say "grappling with a nut, let's see if we can get him to turn." Do you mean to break the nut so you can eat the fruit inside?

"The tendency to do this varies greatly between speakers and between dialects." Do you mean people using "he" or "she" to refer to any object depends on where the speaks are from and the their dialects?

Thank you

Tinanam

Mr Wordy · Answer

AnonymousI hope you don't mind me asking, when you say "grappling with a nut, let's see if we can get him to turn." Do you mean to break the nut so you can eat the fruit inside?

No, I meant a nut like this: ; specifically, one that is stuck and can't be undone. Sorry, I should have chosen an example that was easier to understand.

Anonymous"The tendency to do this varies greatly between speakers and between dialects." Do you mean people using "he" or "she" to refer to any object depends on where the speaks are from and the their dialects?

Not quite. "she" is not commonly used to refer to "any object"; it is usually reserved for certain special things such as ships and machinery. In the paragraph that you quote from, I was explaining the use of "he". In colloquial speech, some people may use "he" to refer to objects they are interacting with (as in my "nut" example), whereas others would never say it. In the UK, I associate this use of "he" with older speakers and speakers of rural dialects. This use of "he" is never appropriate in more formal English. In contrast, the use of "she" for ships and countries is standard English and can be used in formal contexts (in fact, "she" for countries is mostly a formal or literary usage).

Anonymous · Answer

Hi Mr Wordy,

Thank you for your kind explanation. I understand "he" and "she" usages.

Have a very good day.

Tinanam

"She" for ships

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