They/Them

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As the comic shows, "they" ("their," in this case) was already used as a singular when the gender was unknown. The only change is it's now also used if the person's gender is known and isn't "he" or "she."

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Thou was singular subject and thee was singular object.

Thou, Thee, Thy, Thine & Ye: Meanings & Usage

In works of old, high-fantasy or historic fiction one may have chanced across the strange words: thou, thee, thy, thine and ye. Whilst mos...

(activeenglishcee.blogspot.com)

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That's something I wonder about as a non native speaker: it's singular they but verbs are still plural (they are, not *they is, they comes). Maybe this will change some day, maybe not. Singular s might die out anyway or maybe because of singular they.

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What is "JK" referencing to?

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Yesn't. Actually no.

The singular was thou for subject and thee for object and the plural was ye/you. In formal speech the plural was used and the subject pronoun was replaced by the object but I can't tell you in which order.

The þ-thing didn't effect the pronoun but some surnames and the article. I think some pubs have names like "ye old". They used to be "þe(=the) old" and have nothing to do with þe old pronoun, even tho it is written the same.

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That comment did not imply any of this in the least

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Hey I remember a Hank Green video about this. I suffer from time to time with not being able to burp either, so I tried to remember this. Basically, botox injections are found to help for not burping, I think a specific variety, where a muscle is not working right. I think it's more in the testing phase, but maybe, you too could burp someday!

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Don't blame native speakers that your textbook is outdated

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God rest ye merry gentleman is the "ye" example I like to think of.

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I'm tired of calling John, John, every time I refer to Join, but I wasn't paying attention to John's pronouns, so now I'm stuck until I have a chance to ask John, when I next see John.

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Or you could just use "they." Convenient!

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Calling people what they ask to be called just doesn't have to be this difficult.

And yes, his royal lordship Starn, the majestic, that goes for you, too. It's fine. We're cool with your chosen name. And I admit, the opera cape absolutely works for you.

And I don't need to know what genitalia most other people are rocking. That's none of my business, unless we're really into each-other, in a very intimate way.

It takes all my willpower not to be get pretty inappropriate every time a government form asks my birth sex:

"Oh! We just met at this office of motor vehicles...I didn't know you felt that way about me! This is so much to process. I admit there's a mutual attraction. Of course I feel it too. I'm delighted that you had a special form made up to ask! I'm flattered! Want to grab dinner, and see where this goes?"

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Yeah. And Y'all also used to be plural. Now it can be singular and we use All Y'all to clarify when we need people to know we mean plural. Language is bonkers.

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I've never understood the hatred. It's nonsensical.

It's just basic respect and courtesy to call someone what they want to be called.

If someone wants to identify as a tuna melt with "it" pronouns, I will do that. It doesn't make my life harder, and it seems important to them.

Just so long as I'm not expected to know what to call them telepathically before they've told me.

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Remember when we just conversed like human beings and didn't have all this convoluted nonsense about worrying over pronouns?

If the person is called John, 99.9% of the time, you know what the pronouns would be, because not everyone is terminally online.

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Man Christmas dinner is gonna rock this year. Just like my mom will play dumb and look confused that I used "they" as a singular, I'm going to play dumb and look confused when she says "you". I see no downsides.

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English is so inconsistent at this point.

At this point? At this very point, specifically due to the historically valid usage of one gender neutral pronoun? Now is the time that it's finally become an inconsistent language? Singular "they" is the thing that has pushed English over the edge from logical and sensical to arbitrary and confusing? Of all the foibles and quirks, this is the one that is simply unforgivable and must be changed?

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Oh yeah it took me a while to default to 'they' instead of 'he/she' lol
Sometimes I still mess up and assume, and sometimes I say 'they' when I don't mean to also. Brains are weird.

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Calling people what they ask to be called just doesn't have to be this difficult.

Yeah, I don't really understand why people get so upset about Drag specifically, like it's not that hard once you figure it out.

CarrotsHaveEars

I didn't say anything you said.

I think a more sensible way to include LGBT+ group is to just make "she/her" obsolete. We are all "he/him", and we are "they/them" when in a group. Way cleaner than this, excuse me, shit that we foreign English speakers have to adjust to for every few years.