Pronouns are words we use to describe ourselves and refer to others. Most often, a person’s pronoun is aligned with their gender identity (whether they identify as a man, woman, both, or neither). There are Gendered Pronouns, like he and she, and Gender Neutral Pronouns (gender free) or All-Gender Pronouns (includes all genders). Sometimes pronouns are abbreviated as GP (Gender Pronoun) or PGP (Preferred Gender Pronoun).

Download a PDF of our Pronouns Handout

Learning new pronouns can be hard, but it is a lot easier that you think!

Tips for Learning Pronouns:

• Don’t assume: Sometimes you can guess pronouns based on how someone looks, but there is no way to be sure.
• Ask: “Nice to meet you. What pronoun do you go by?” OR “What pronoun does Dan use?” OR “What’s your GP?”
• Use names or descriptions: “Hillary went to the store & Hillary forgot milk.” OR “The person in the red hat said…”
• Use all gender language: Replace “ladies,” or “young man,” with “everyone,” or “this person.”
• Ask for pronouns in programs and meetings: “Let’s introduce ourselves with our name, pronoun, and age.”
• Think about safety: If the place is crowded or might be unaccepting, ask in private or wait until later.
• Mistakes can happen: If you make a mistake, correct yourself. Try not to draw a lot of attention to the mistake.
• Ask for patience, be patient: Let people know you’re trying and understand if someone reacts to your mistake.
• Make it a personal priority: Correct pronouns increase safety & acceptance. Be diligent and attentive.
•  Practice, practice, practice!: The more you think about pronouns, the easier it is to learn them.

Common Pronouns:

 Useful Links

• T-Vox Gender Neutral Pronouns
• Gender Sensitive Language
• Gender Neutral Pronouns Wiki