--On Mon, Apr 27, 1998 8:29 pm -0400 "Bob Hilliard" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> Mark Baker <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > >> "They" is not only a singular, it is also widely accepted as a singular >> pronoun, and has been used as such by not only ordinary people but also >> great writers for hundreds of years. > > All of my dictionaries give "nominative plural of he, she, or it" > as the primary definition of "they". My unabridged dictionary adds > "(used with an indefinite singular antecedent in place of the definite > masculine he or definite feminine she)". The examples cited are for > indefinite antecedents such as "anyone" or whoever". I do not think > Project Leader is an indefinite antecedent. Ha! My dictionary's bigger than yours ;-) Oxford English Dictionary (Compact): <quote> They : pers. pron.... B.I.1 As pronoun of the third person plural... [..] 2 Often used in reference to a singular noun made universal by the use of every, any, or no, etc., or applicable to one of either sex ( = 'he or she' ). </quote> The project leader *is*, in this sense, an indefinite antedecent - the only indefiniteness required is indefinite sex, which the project leader possesses (no offence, Ian ;). This is getting silly. I will reiterate my opinion. My opinion is that 'they', irrespective of grammatical accuracy, is to me an acceptable alternative to 'he' which removes gender-bias without compromising the flow of the text. You need not agree :) Yours, Jules Bean /----------------+-------------------------------+---------------------\ | Jelibean aka | [EMAIL PROTECTED] | 6 Evelyn Rd | | Jules aka | | Richmond, Surrey | | Julian Bean | [EMAIL PROTECTED] | TW9 2TF *UK* | +----------------+-------------------------------+---------------------+ | War doesn't demonstrate who's right... just who's left. | | When privacy is outlawed... only the outlaws have privacy. | \----------------------------------------------------------------------/ -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]