English As a Second Language @lemmy.ml iso @lemy.lol 1y ago

How to call people of unknown gender in English? (he or she)

cross-posted from: https://lemy.lol/post/196311

I'm from Turkey so English isn't my native language. We just call O in Turkish to no matter its he/she/it. Is there an equivalent of this generic term on English?

I don't want to call he to a female or vice versa.

14 comments

They as in "what they said"
- For instance I want to say someone is bad to a person. If I know he is a male, then I can say He is a bad person. But with your example, I should say they are bad person or what? It looks plural.
  
  Yeah exactly. They can be plural when referring to more than one person or singular when referring to just one.
  
  See entry B1 in the Cambridge dictionary and entry 3 in the Merriam-Webster one, for example.
It can feel a little clunky, but I do this all the time when typing online. Particularly on discord or somewhere where I have no idea of a members gender.

"I first noticed this member join our server a week ago but they have not posted a lot. The few posts that they have made show that they are interested in the game, but I think they are looking for a different experience. I wish them well in their search for a different group."

14 comments