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Tarirotari Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

"They" for generic singular reference?

"Take the individual to a corner of the room -always the same, and take off their shoes and unnecessary garments."

Sometimes I've seen the 3rd person plural pronuon being used to avoid having to use the form "he or she" "him or her", etc.

I don't know whether this is something just Americans use or other nationalities also make use of it. My question is: Could this be considered academic English? Has it already made its way into proper grammar? Or do I have to avoid using it in writing?
  

Top answer

You should still try to avoid it in formal writing, even though it has been in common, standard use for centuries in the spoken language. html ] HERE [/url] is an interesting piece.

— Mister Micawber

  • You should still try to avoid it in formal writing, even though it has been in common, standard use for centuries in the spoken language.
  • html ] HERE [/url] is an interesting piece.
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4 Answers
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You should still try to avoid it in formal writing, even though it has been in common, standard use for centuries in the spoken language. [url=http://www.crossmyt.com/hc/linghebr/austheir.html] HERE[/url] is an interesting piece.
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I think I heard this form in a documentary, but I'm not sure. Would that be possible? Is it used on TV.
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And thanks a lot for the link. I didn't even imagine I could find something like this.
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I think I heard this form in a documentary, but I'm not sure. Would that be possible? Is it used on TV.
Oh, yes, of course-- everyone uses it. They don't even notice it.

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