play video his or her
Up Next
Title
CANCEL
video his or her
Usage Notes

Is singular 'they' a better choice?

The awkward case of 'his or her'

"Everyone should do his or her best in whatever situations he or she happens to find himself or herself in?" That's awkward. Perhaps everyone should just do their best in the situations they find themselves in. Even if their best involves they as a singular pronoun.

Up next

play video his or her
Is singular 'they' a better choice?

 

The awkward case of 'his or her'

play ismo merriam webster tip
Some Odd Words with ISMO: "People Tipping"

 

Comedian ISMO on the complexities of the word 'tip'

play serial comma
The Serial Comma Explained

 

Why don't they call it the Merriam-Webster comma?

play emily-brewster-with-the-words-effect-affect-on-screen
How to Remember 'Affect' and 'Effect'

 

A simple way to keep them apart. (Most of the time.)

play woman and dog illustration
'Nip it in the butt' or 'Nip it in the bud'?

 

We're gonna stop you right there

play video schwa
The Schwa

 

The most common vowel sound in English causes many spelling problems.

play video affect vs effect
Affect vs. Effect

 

Here's the lowdown on what may be the most confusing pair of words in the English language.

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
union jack speech bubble
The Great British Vocabulary Quiz Make sure you know the difference between a loo a...
See All