Breaking down "they"

Breaking down the meaning of Merriam-Webster’s word of the year

photo by sky stockton

In September 2019, Merriam-Webster Dictionary added a new definition of “they” to their indexes. Previously, the dictionary included the definitions “used to refer to people in a general way,” and “used with a singular antecedent to refer to an unknown or unspecified person,” to define the pronoun. However, this new addition officially adopted the term “they” to “refer to a single person whose gender identity is nonbinary.”

To clarify, nonbinary means not specific to male or female. “They” is an umbrella term under gender identity and does not have to do with sexual orientation. Someone who goes by “they” simply does not want to restrict themselves to the exclusive he/him, or she/her pronouns. 

“I don’t really identify completely male, but I also don’t identify completely female, so it’s just a more neutral term,” said an anonymous SJHS student who has identified by “they” for the past year. 

Although this specific definition of “they” has only been present in the dictionary for 4 months, the gender-neutral pronoun was named Merriam-Webster Dictionary’s Word of the Year. According to Merriam-Webster Dictionary, searches for the word “they” raised by 313% over the past year. As the English language continues to adapt with time, it is progressing to become a more inclusive language for the LGBTQ+ community.