Template:Pronounshelp
{{pronounshelp}} is a template for generating a pronoun set and example sentence for reference and understanding.
It looks like this when it's used:
| Pronoun | Singular they - they / them / their / theirs / themself |
|---|---|
| In use | Sam is writing their example sentence, and they are very pleased with themself. It was pretty hard for them, but they are happy because it's theirs. |
Copy and paste
Copy and paste this into your page, and then type in the pronoun form after each =. For example, for the set "he/him", you would write subj=he |obj=him ... etc.
{{pronounshelp|pronounname= |subj= |obj= |posdet= |pospro= |reflex= |verbs=singular/plural (delete as appropriate) |name= }}
Please note that singular "they" uses plural verbs, even when talking about one person - so, despite the name singular "they", you would type verbs=plural.
Abbreviations
- See also: Wikipedia's page on third-person pronouns.
| Abbreviation | Full name | Example using "he/him" set |
|---|---|---|
| subj | subject (nominative) | He is writing |
| obj | object (oblique) | I wrote about him |
| posdet | possessive determiner | That's his notebook |
| pospro | possessive pronoun | That pen is his |
| reflex | reflexive | Sam wrote about himself |
Verbs
Consider these sentences:
- He/him pronouns: He is a dentist.
- Singular they/them pronouns: They are a dentist.
The he/him pronoun set uses singular verbs - the verb here is "is". But the singular they/them set uses plural verbs - "are". Singular they doesn't typically use singular verbs, meaning one would not usually say "they is a dentist" when using singular they.