Grammar Tips & Articles »

Sexism - Proposed Solution

This Grammar.com article is about Sexism - Proposed Solution — enjoy your reading!


39 sec read
2,214 Views
  Ed Good  —  Grammar Tips
Font size:

Make your antecedents plural.

Refer to people, not a person. Refer to readers, not a reader. Talk about neighbors, not a neighbor. Then you can use they, their-theirs, them, and themselves.

Problem solved.

Some texts now use this approach. When generalizing, they make antecedents plural. They can then use third-person plural pronouns, which do not reveal gender:

Veterinarians are encouraged to modify and adapt the sample forms included here to fit their needs. James F. Wilson, Law and Ethics of the Veterinary Profession, p. 248 (1990).

That’s the solution I use. Whenever I’m writing about a generic type of person, I refer instead to people. Then I can use they, their-theirs, them, and themselves.

Read the next topic for more solutions to sexist writing.

 

Previous: Sexist Writing

Next: Sexism - Other Solutions

Rate this article:

Have a discussion about this article with the community:

1 Comment
  • Jeremy Hanson
    Jeremy Hanson
    To hell with that. I purposely use generic "he" because I refuse to conform to the radical Marxist agenda of corrupting our society. However, I do find this greatly preferable to the infuriating singular "they," which I find EVERYWHERE!

    "A veterinarian is encouraged to modify and adapt the sample forms included here to fit his needs." — Most correct-sounding and educated prose.
     
    LikeReply5 years ago

Citation

Use the citation below to add this article to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"Sexism - Proposed Solution." Grammar.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 6 Dec. 2024. <https://www.grammar.com/sexism-proposed-solution>.

Free, no signup required:

Add to Chrome

Check your text and writing for style, spelling and grammar problems everywhere on the web!

Free, no signup required:

Add to Firefox

Check your text and writing for style, spelling and grammar problems everywhere on the web!

Free Writing Tool:

Instant
Grammar Checker

Improve your grammar, vocabulary, style, and writing — all for FREE!


Quiz

Are you a grammar master?

»
Choose the sentence with correct use of the gerund as the subject:
A She enjoys to swim in the ocean.
B They are good at playing the piano.
C He is read a book.
D Running is good exercise.

Improve your writing now:

Download Grammar eBooks

It’s now more important than ever to develop a powerful writing style. After all, most communication takes place in reports, emails, and instant messages.