Constant Content

Hi,

I'm wondering if it's ever OK to write "he or she" as part of a sentence in a CC article, to make sure there is subject/verb agreement. Or is this considered awkward wording? I am struggling with getting subject - verb agreement in a long article, and I have written "he or she" twice in the article.

As far as I know, "he or she" is perfectly acceptable grammatically, and I've never had any issues using it.

A while back, "Ed" told us to pick a pronoun and stick with it, so I'd say "No" although we haven't heard from Ed publicly in about 2(i think?) years.

There's more editors now, but that's the rule I follow. I write for another place that told me I need to use "she" more in my tech articles though! LOL That editor likes me to switch it up.

I'm pretty sure though you're not supposed to use "he or she". It has to be one or the other.

Hi EmmaC,

Would you like to put up an example sentence for us to comment on?

Thanks.

Abbamay

Thanks to you both. I think I'll try to cut them out. But here is one excerpt:

"A medical intuitive may suggest that you return to your primary-care doctor for specific tests or treatments. He or she may also refer you to another health professional, such as a ... "

Actually I think this is a little confusing because "he or she" could refer to the doctor, as well as to the medical intuitive!

Thanks for your suggestions

Hi EmmaC,

What about trying 'they'?

"A medical intuitive may suggest that you return to your primary-care doctor for specific tests or treatments, and they mayalso refer you to another health professional, such as a ... "

You could also try the passive tense: "...treatments, and you may also be referred to another health professional..."

This way you can avoid he and she.

Sounds like you're doing a great job, EmmaC!

Abba May

Sorry about funny spacing. I couldn't get the italics/underline thing right

EmmaC, thanks for giving us an example, by the way.

Yeah, I like Abbamay's idea of maybe turning it into plural, so you can have it both ways? I don't think you should use "he or she." I've never had any writing site say that's ok.

Thanks to you both! I like the idea of the passive sentence, but I'm a bit confused about something. Grammar isn't my strong point, so I'm probably wrong here, but isn't the plural "they" a problem? "A medical intuitive" is singular, so is it a pronoun - antecedent problem if I then use a plural pronoun ("they") to refer to a single medical intuitive?

ps thanks for your encouragement Abbamay. It looks like you are relatively new around here as well. It's a steep learning curve, but I'm really enjoying writing for CC!

Hi again,

CC's writer guidelines send you to this link: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/595/01/ . It tells you not to use "they" as a singular pronoun, so maybe you should be on the safe side and not do it, or alternatively message them and ask specifically.

In my country we use "they" as a singular pronoun all the time. This link below from Grammar Girl explains how it is often a subject that is avoided because there isn't a perfect solution for the problem. She thinks it's fine to use it. http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/educat ... s?page=all

If it were me and I wanted to avoid a rejection, I'd use the passive instead or make the noun plural. "Medical intuitives may suggest... and they may..."

I've been here for a year and a half I think, but I did do a masters in language teaching (applied linguistics) and taught grammar at tertiary level before I had a family. There is a school of thought that allows modern changes to grammar to be used, because language is dynamic and changing. However, many of us have noticed that these wonderful editors (who work so hard!) are on the conservative side, so it is best to try and be accurate. For example, they won't let me start a sentence with "but", although many writers use that for effect and it is becoming more widely accepted in various countries. I live near the bottom of the world, and we do write/talk differently here!

Enjoy your day anyway, and feel free to update this post if you want more discussion or want to let us know how you go.

Thanks SO much for that clarification. I will proceed with caution and have already changed the sentence to the passive voice, as you suggested. You say you live on the bottom of the world...could that be Australia, NZ or South Africa? (I'm Australian).

NZ - one of your near neighbours So sorry about the rugby the other week...

ha ha - I'm from Victoria though, so it's AFL all the way!

Well, you're in the most beautiful area, aren't you? I went to Victoria once and loved it. Some people there thought we were from England but I was sure they would have recognised our across-the-ditch accent.

Keep up the writing! This is the best site I've found and I'm making all the money I need, so I think you might enjoy it here too.