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they
The most common use of this pronoun is to refer to a group of two or more people or things. In this plural sense, it always takes a plural verb form (e.g., "they are" rather than "they is").
In modern English, this word is frequently used as a singular pronoun. This occurs when the gender of a person is unknown, irrelevant, or when a person identifies as non-binary. Even when referring to a single person, the plural verb form "they are" is still used to maintain grammatical consistency, though this can feel counterintuitive to learners.
There is also a specific pragmatic use where the word refers to an unspecified group of people in power or a general societal consensus. For example, saying "They say it will rain tomorrow" does not refer to a specific group of people, but rather to a general report or common knowledge. In some contexts, it can imply a sense of distance or frustration toward an anonymous authority, such as "They keep changing the rules."
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例文
語源
Derived from the Old Norse word "þeir," which replaced the Old English "hie." This shift occurred during the period of Old Norse influence in England (roughly 9th to 11th centuries), as the original Old English form became phonetically too similar to other pronouns like "he" and "she," leading to a need for a more distinct plural form.