Enter a word or phrase in any language 👆
Language:
Translation and analysis of words by ChatGPT artificial intelligence
On this page you can get a detailed analysis of a word or phrase, produced by the best artificial intelligence technology to date:
- how the word is used
- frequency of use
- it is used more often in oral or written speech
- word translation options
- usage examples (several phrases with translation)
- etymology
What (who) is They - definition
ENGLISH-LANGUAGE THIRD-PERSON PLURAL, ALSO USED AS A SINGULAR PRONOUN
Their; They (pronoun); Theirs; They're; Them (pronoun); Generic they; They are
they
¦ pronoun [third person plural]
1. used to refer to two or more people or things previously mentioned or easily identified.
people in general.
informal people in authority regarded collectively.
2. used to refer to a person of unspecified sex (in place of either 'he' or 'he or she').
Origin
ME: from ON their, nominative plural masculine of sa.
Usage
It is now widely held that the traditional use of he to refer to a person of either sex is outdated and sexist; the alternative, he or she, can be clumsy. It is now generally acceptable, therefore, to use they (with its counterparts them, their, and themselves) instead. This is especially the case where they follows an indefinite pronoun such as anyone or someone (anyone can join if they are a resident). In view of the growing acceptance of they, it is used in this dictionary in many cases where he would have been used formerly.
they
Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English.
Note: 'They' is a third person plural pronoun. 'They' is used as the subject of a verb.
1.
You use they to refer to a group of people, animals, or things.
The two men were far more alike than they would ever admit...
People matter because of what they are, not what they have...
PRON
2.
You use they instead of 'he or she' to refer to a person without saying whether that person is a man or a woman. Some people think this use is incorrect.
The teacher is not responsible for the student's success or failure. They are only there to help the student learn...
PRON
3.
You use they in expressions such as 'they say' or 'they call it' to refer to people in general when you are making general statements about what people say, think, or do.
They say there's plenty of opportunities out there, you just have to look carefully and you'll find them...
PRON [vagueness]
They
(·obj) The plural of he, she, or it. They is never used adjectively, but always as a pronoun proper, and sometimes refers to persons without an antecedent expressed.
Wikipedia
They
In Modern English, they is a third-person pronoun relating to a grammatical subject.
Examples of use of They
1. They smell, they bite, they crawl where they shouldn‘t.
2. They feed, they nurse, they clean, they wipe bottoms.
3. They cleaned up wreckage and they removed mold and they repaired roofs and they provided clothing and they tutored students.
4. They honk, they hiss, they harass, and – it‘s hard not to notice – they scatter droppings everywhere.
5. They can‘t go to school, they can‘t play, they can‘t eat and they can‘t drink.