You-all and "you all"

Question

I just stumbled upon "you-all" in the American Heritage Dictionary.  It says you-all and y'all is chiefly southern U.S.  So, how about "you all"?  It seems to me that "you all" is very common.  Is "you all" a different thing from "you-all"?

Delmobile · Accepted Answer

There are many occasions when even a Yankee might want to say "you all."
Did you all hear when he said? I want to make sure everybody heard it correctly, because I intend to file a complaint.
I would like you all to take out your papers and begin when I say "Start."
If you all take three cookies, there won't be enough for the guests.

In these examples, either "all" is emphasized or else given the same weight as "you." It's important to the meaning of the sentence.

Southerners, on the other hand, tack "all" onto "you" where other speakers would simply use "you" and let it be assumed to be plural.
I'm sick and tired of y'all ******** about everything I do. From now on y'all can do your own laundry.
Do y'all want to go to the movies, or just hang out around here?
Y'all, I swear, this has been the best birthday I've ever had. I love y'all so much.

They don't say "you-all" where I live, but as I understand it, this would be pronounced with the emphasis on the first syllable, distinguishing it from "you all" without the hyphen.

Important Note: contrary to what you might see written or filmed in depictions of the American South, "y'all" is ALWAYS plural. ALWAYS. In fact, while other English speakers have to deal with the ambiguity of "you" being both the singular and plural pronoun, Southerners do not.
I heard y'all were moving, but then somebody told me you were going to stay here and finish your last year of school.

Rafaelinrio · Answer

In the South of the USA they use y'all to differ from you in the singular form.
Here in Toronto, Canada where I live we usually say you guys if we mean to say you in the plural. In the USA they use the you guys form too.

Pter · Answer

Thank y'all for the very clear and eye-opening explanation.  I've never imagined that there existed a plural form of "you" in modern day English.  Perhaps, that's why I find it so difficult to understand Southern US accent.

Anonymous · Answer

I would also venture to say, that "you-all" and its abbrev. mentioned here, are all colloquial english.   Just as in Australia , its equivalent is"youse" "pronounced "yoos".   Not sure of the spelling.  It is not good english, nor is the "you-all" I suspect.  But if one is quoting what someone said, then you would use it in writing.

Pter · Answer

Thanks for the reminder and the additional example.  Dialectal English certainly shouldn't be used in formal writing.  However, for a non-native speaker like me, knowing such dialectal differences certainly helps me in understanding what is being said.

You-all and "you all"

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