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Taka Posted 18 years ago
Grammar

their?

From YouTube:

It's also possible that you've been blocked from commenting on that video or that the user has set their comments to appear once they've approved them.

What does their/they refer to?
  

Top answer

"Their" is used as a possessive for "the user" (to avoid gender pronouns like his or hers). "they've": they is a pronoun for "the user" and is a contraction of "they have".

— Vorpar

  • "Their" is used as a possessive for "the user" (to avoid gender pronouns like his or hers).
  • "they've": they is a pronoun for "the user" and is a contraction of "they have".
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4 Answers
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"Their" is used as a possessive for "the user" (to avoid gender pronouns like his or hers).

"they've": they is a pronoun for "the user" and is a contraction of "they have".
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Initially, I also took it that way, but then, grammatically, doesn't 'the user' have to be 'the users' instead?
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TakaInitially, I also took it that way, but then, grammatically, doesn't 'the user' have to be 'the users' instead?
If there's only one user you are referring to, then you can't say "the users". Assuming you are referring to something like Youtube, the user is probably a member, someone who has an account and the the one who uploaded the video. If you can
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You're correct, their is plural. It's becoming more acceptable, however, to use they/their as a "gender neutral" pronoun.
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