DGS49
Diamond Member
We were all taught in grammar school that the word, "you" was correct as a singular or a plural, even when it's meaning was ambiguous.
For example, imagine someone looking at a small group of people, clearly addressing one of them, and says, "You are invited to my party next Thursday." Was one person invited or the group? In fact, further discussion is required to clarify what was intended, despite the clear grammatical rule.
We Americans find this ambiguity to be intolerable, and have devised different strategies to address the ambiguity.
In my geographical area, the low-brow types long ago coined the word, "yinz" to address it. This word is so prevalent and so obviously preposterous that many of us now identify ourselves as "Yinzers." We have tee-shirts and other garments and adornments to show it off.
In the South, they used the expression "You all," but that plural usage was rendered moot when shortened to "y'all" and used for both singular and plural applications, to wit, "Y'all come back now," when an individual is leaving a business establishment or home. So again, in the hypothetical above, some further discussion would be required if the invitation is stated as, "Y'all are invited to my party..."
In the Northeast, one used to hear the word, "youse" (pronounced "use") to indicate the plural of you. I don't know if this is still in common usage.
Is there a simple solution to this conundrum?
For example, imagine someone looking at a small group of people, clearly addressing one of them, and says, "You are invited to my party next Thursday." Was one person invited or the group? In fact, further discussion is required to clarify what was intended, despite the clear grammatical rule.
We Americans find this ambiguity to be intolerable, and have devised different strategies to address the ambiguity.
In my geographical area, the low-brow types long ago coined the word, "yinz" to address it. This word is so prevalent and so obviously preposterous that many of us now identify ourselves as "Yinzers." We have tee-shirts and other garments and adornments to show it off.
In the South, they used the expression "You all," but that plural usage was rendered moot when shortened to "y'all" and used for both singular and plural applications, to wit, "Y'all come back now," when an individual is leaving a business establishment or home. So again, in the hypothetical above, some further discussion would be required if the invitation is stated as, "Y'all are invited to my party..."
In the Northeast, one used to hear the word, "youse" (pronounced "use") to indicate the plural of you. I don't know if this is still in common usage.
Is there a simple solution to this conundrum?
