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Results 1 to 25 of 147 (page 1 of 6)

Gender-inclusive writing: A unifying force

An English blog post about the Government of Canada’s efforts to support inclusive writing. Gender – and specifically, gender inclusivity – are topics that have been very much in the news in recent decades. Gender-diverse individuals and groups around the world have been voicing concerns about various issues, including language that excludes them. So what’s being done to address these concerns? In Canada, the federal government is committed to supporting inclusivity in written documents within the public service. As a result, the Translation Bureau at Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) has developed and published tools to encourage gender-inclusive writing. Making strides in gender-inclusive writing In 2017, the Translation Bureau published two bilingual resources to help the federal public service write inclusively: a linguistic recommendation on gender-inclusive correspondence and the Gender and Sexual Diversity Glossary (opens in new tab). In 2021, in response to the Call to Action on Anti-Racism, Equity, and Inclusion in the Federal Public Service (opens in new tab), several federal organizations, including the Translation Bureau, co-developed the Guide on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Terminology (opens in new tab). That same year, in an effort to support the Government of Canada’s diversity and inclusion priorities, representatives from over 35 federal, provincial and territorial organizations came together to form an interdepartmental working group co-chaired by Women and Gender Equality Canada, Canadian Heritage and PSPC. The group’s mandate? To develop guidelines for producing texts free of discrimination on the basis of gender or any other identity factor. As a result, in the fall of 2022, the Translation Bureau published the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing (opens in new tab) and the Inclusionary (opens in new tab), a collection of gender-inclusive solutions for gendered terms, along with their French counterparts, the Lignes directrices sur l’écriture inclusive (opens in new tab) and the Inclusionnaire (opens in new tab). Overcoming challenges in developing inclusive writing guidelines The working group’s first challenge was to consolidate resources from various organizations. The group needed to expand on the work already done in order to produce a unified set of guidelines with a wide range of practical solutions for different contexts. Another concern was to ensure that the guidelines and resources were accessible not only to public servants but also to interested organizations and individuals outside the government. The solution was to house the resources on the Language Portal of Canada, a public-facing website managed by the Translation Bureau. It was also critical to ensure that the guidelines and resources reflected the perspectives and realities of gender-diverse individuals. To that end, members of gender-diverse communities were called upon to serve as consultants and to assist in drafting content. In addition, rounds of consultations were held with equity, diversity and inclusion networks; language and communications specialists; and organizations with a special interest in inclusive writing. Over 2000 comments were received in English and French. The content was then revised in light of this feedback. Lastly, a particular challenge involved finding viable solutions for French, a language in which gender is far more visible than in English. Despite a common belief that gender-inclusive writing is impossible in French, the French guidelines provide several effective techniques for achieving a gender-inclusive text. In conclusion, it should be noted that the Translation Bureau’s gender-inclusive writing guidelines and resources provide suggestions on how to address the issues involved in writing inclusive content; they don’t provide answers that can be automatically applied in all contexts. Writers must therefore carefully discern which solutions should be applied depending on the context, the target audience and the nature of their text. Note: This post was originally published in Multilingual magazine.
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

Embracing the singular “they” as a gender-neutral pronoun

An English blog post on the use of the singular “they” as a gender-neutral pronoun. Almost nothing about being transgender has been easy for me. Luckily, I’m English-speaking, which means there’s a very simple way to use the pronouns that work best for me. The singular use of “they” and its other grammatical forms (“them”/“theirs”) is the most comfortable pronoun usage for me. I’m a genderqueer, transgender person whose gender presentation is more masculine-of-centre. What does all of that mean? Respect and inclusion It means I’m a human being just like you, who deserves the same amount of respect as my other colleagues. It also means that I don’t feel comfortable being referred to as “male” or “female”; and while I will accept masculine pronouns, using neutral pronouns when speaking of me is the best way to not exclude me. We have an incredible capacity and ability to continually grow the English language, adapting and evolving as our society does. We have many opportunities to grow ourselves, interpersonally, at work and in our wider social circles, by being self-aware and self-educating and by moving with the times, as it were. Evolution of singular “they” The use of singular “they” has been around for centuries, from William Shakespeare to Jane Austen to Charles Dickens. More recently, singular “they” has become normalized via the protections that have been put in place for genderqueer and gender non-conforming (or non-binary) individuals. This is certainly in part thanks to Canada’s Bill C-16. Having basic human rights protections against discrimination towards transgender persons is a great step forward for Canada. As editor Gael Spivak also points out in her blog post, singular “they” has been around for hundreds of years, and it’s here to stay. I’ve had many people ask me what the point is, why I make things harder for myself, why I can’t just “pick one” (meaning “he” or “she”), or inquire about the importance of pronouns and their proper usage. Personal pronouns are linked to identity Pronouns are important as they teach people how to properly refer to the person they’re speaking about. They show people the best way to respect me. They’re important as a part of my identity and an expression of who I am. I know I’m genderqueer as surely as a cisgender person knows they’re not transgender! I don’t use singular “they” in order to make things harder for others, to be trendy, or to push any kind of agenda. I use it because it makes me feel like myself. It’s the right and most comfortable fit for me. Perhaps you don’t feel as attached to your pronouns, but perhaps you’ve never had to assert them as valid. Maybe you haven’t had to assert your personal pronouns as a part of your identity while others have purposefully misused these words to attack you … while others have decided for you that, on the basis of their perception of who you are, you aren’t who you say you are. Learning to use neutral pronouns One of the problems I’ve encountered in the workplace is how to properly use “they” as a singular pronoun. I don’t demand that everyone in my workplace use singular “they” for me, as I’m also comfortable being referred to in the masculine. However, I do normalize singular “they” when speaking about clients or other colleagues, depending on the context. I do tell people that I use “they” pronouns, I wear a “they/them” pronoun pin with my identification card, and I have produced educational materials on neutral pronouns and how to use them. So, how exactly do you use them? Here are a few examples with some fun facts about myself: Christopher is not in today; they went to Iceland on vacation. They have a cat named Agent S. They are always finding ways to help educate others about LGBTQ2+ issues. Using singular “they” pronouns, or any of the neopronouns, takes practice and patience. Patience for yourself as you retrain your brain, and patience from the person whose pronouns you’re attempting not to botch. “Practice makes perfect” holds true for the singular use of “they” pronouns. I invite you to practise: you can start by thinking of all the instances where you already automatically use “they” in the singular. For example, if you receive a phone call but the caller hangs up, you may be likely to say, “I don’t know, they hung up” when someone asks you who called. What other instances can you think of where you have already begun to normalize the use of “they” as a singular pronoun?
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

Making letters and emails gender-inclusive

An English post about the Translation Bureau’s recommendation on gender-inclusive writing in correspondence. The Translation Bureau recently published a linguistic recommendation on gender inclusivity in correspondence. In it, we describe some simple techniques you can use to write letters and emails that are inclusive of all gender identities. Understanding gender identity According to the Translation Bureau’s Gender and sexual diversity glossary, gender identity is “a person's internal and deeply-felt sense of being man or woman, both, or neither.” Someone who doesn’t identify with the masculine or feminine gender is referred to as having a non-binary gender identity. The solution to a current issue Our recommendation on gender inclusivity in correspondence addresses a very current issue. Let’s put things into context. In 2017, the Government of Canada announced that Canadians could now indicate a gender other than male or female when applying for a passport. And some provincial governments have also implemented a gender-neutral choice on identification documents like driver’s licences and health cards. As a result, government departments and other organizations turned to us for advice on the following question: How do you draft correspondence that is inclusive not only of both sexes but also of non-binary gender identities? Our recommendation answers that question. Gender-inclusive correspondence Certain parts of a letter have traditionally included an indication of gender. For example, in the inside address, the receiver’s name usually begins with a courtesy title (most often, either “Mr.” or “Ms.”) that reflects the gender of the receiver. And the salutation usually contains the same courtesy title: “Dear Ms. Brown,” “Dear Mr. Smith.” Moreover, when we don’t know the receiver’s name, we have been told in the past to use a salutation like “Dear Sir or Madam” in order to include both sexes. This last solution is part of what we call “non-sexist writing”: writing that is inclusive of both men and women. The problem with these formulas is that a non-binary person may not identify with them. In order to be inclusive of both sexes and all gender identities, a new approach is needed. Our recommendation Our recommendation explains what we think is the best approach for gender inclusivity when you are writing a letter or an email to the following audiences: individuals whose gender is unknown non-binary individuals (that is, individuals who do not identify with either the masculine or the feminine gender) a diverse group of people (so that no member of the group feels excluded) In our recommendation, we show you how to make the receiver’s address, the salutation, and the body of your message inclusive. To see what we advise, go to the Bureau’s recommendation on gender-inclusive writing in correspondence. Of course, in cases where you know the receiver identifies with the masculine or feminine gender, you can rely on the standard practices for business writing and use courtesy titles like “Mr.” or “Ms.” or other indications of gender. But in cases where you don’t know, use the principles outlined in our recommendation, to be as inclusive as possible. We encourage you to read our recommendation. Do you think it will be useful for your organization or business? Do you already use some of these techniques for gender-inclusive writing in your workplace? Tell us what you think in the comments section.
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

Test yourself—Gender-neutral writing: The pronoun problem

A quiz on recognizing gender bias in writing, particularly with respect to the use of pronouns.
 Is the sentence correct or does it contain a gender neutrality problem? (Assume formal writing.) Read the article Gender-neutral writing: The pronoun problem to help you out.1. Earl and Jeffrey decided to rent tuxes, since each wanted to look his best for the prom.is correcthas a problem2. Every first-year student entering the polytechnic university must write the mathematics aptitude test before choosing his science courses.is correcthas a problem3. If you are thinking of hiring a teenager to babysit, we recommend that you check whether she has completed our babysitter training course.is correcthas a problem4. All first-year students entering the polytechnic university must write the mathematics aptitude test before choosing their science courses.is correcthas a problem5. To save on rental fees, the company is asking everyone to bring their own lawn chair and wineglass to the staff picnic.is correcthas a problem6. Settling into her chair, the storyteller began to recount the horrifying tale of the 1917 Halifax explosion.is correcthas a problem  
Source: Peck’s English Pointers (articles and exercises on the English language)

Test yourself—Gender-neutral writing: Questions of usage

A quiz on recognizing gender bias in writing.
 Is the sentence correct or does it contain a gender neutrality problem? Read the article Gender-neutral writing: Questions of usage to help you out.1. We offer free delivery within a 25-kilometre radius of the store. Our friendly, professional delivery men will unload your new furniture items and place them where you want them.is correcthas a problem2. The fickle heiress spent money lavishly on whoever was her best friend in a given week.is correcthas a problem3. The president of the parent-teacher association tried to manoeuvre her way into every meeting of the school board trustees, even the in camera sessions.is correcthas a problem4. Considered for over a decade to be the model of an English gentleman, Edgar Smythe-Jones saw his reputation crumble when he got drunk aboard a trans-Atlantic flight and made a pass at a stewardess.is correcthas a problem5. Our patented lawn blower reduces the personpower involved in clearing yards and driveways, and consumes a fraction of the electricity of other leading models.is correcthas a problem6. Though she has been widowed for over a decade, Mrs. Boronski can be spotted on her porch each morning with two cups of tea, one for herself and one for her long-mourned husband.is correcthas a problem7. Whenever he visits the Weeping Willow Inn, Marc orders the house ale and the ploughman’s lunch.is correcthas a problem  
Source: Peck’s English Pointers (articles and exercises on the English language)

Inclusionary: A collection of gender-inclusive solutions

An English writing tool providing gender-inclusive alternatives for gendered nouns and verbs.
 The Inclusionary contains a list of gendered words, along with suggestions for inclusive solutions. It was designed to provide writers, editors and translators with a starting point for writing inclusively in English, in accordance with the techniques outlined in the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing. Not everyone will agree with all the solutions provided in the Inclusionary. Some solutions may not apply in certain contexts. For example, the Inclusionary provides alternatives to gendered terms for family members. Of course, these gendered terms (“mother,” “father,” etc.) are perfectly appropriate in many contexts and don’t need to be consistently avoided. The gender-inclusive alternatives aren’t meant to be used in every context, but rather in those contexts where the gender of the person referred to is non-binary or is unknown. You must therefore exercise judgment in applying the proposed solutions. To learn more about this tool, visit the About the Inclusionary page. Help us improve the Inclusionary by filling out the suggestion form. User guide There are three ways to search this guide: 1. Search in the Inclusionary index Select a letter to browse the Inclusionary alphabetically. Then click on an entry to view its contents. 2. Search by keyword in the Inclusionary Begin typing the word you’re looking for. As you type, a real-time search filter will open the relevant entries and highlight the characters entered in the search field. For best results, type the entire word you’re looking for. Note that the index will disappear when you use the search field. To access the index, simply clear the search field. 3. Use the "Show all" button Click on "Show all" to open up all the entries in the Inclusionary. You can then either browse through the entries or press the "Ctrl" and "F" keys simultaneously on your keyboard and then search by term in the "Search" window of your browser. Unfortunately, this search tip doesn’t work with all types of devices. Top of page Suggestion form User guide Contextual Menu document.getElementById('inclusionary-floating-right-menu').style.display='block';
Source: Writing Tips Plus (English language problems and rules)

Gender-inclusive, non-binary, and gender-neutral language in English writing

An English blog post about the importance of and move toward gender-inclusive, non-binary and gender-neutral language in English writing and translation. Over the past decade, the importance of gender-inclusive English has become widely recognized, with the Merriam Webster Dictionary adding a non-binary, singular definition of “they” in 2019Note 1 and the Oxford English Dictionary tracing the singular “they” as far back as the 14th century.Note 2 Precisely because of how it denotes humanity without specifying gender, “they” has become a pronoun of choice for many English speakers across gender identities, mirroring similar adaptations by speakers of Arabic, French, Hebrew, Spanish, among other languages.Note 3 But the popularization of “they” and other non-binary third-person singular pronouns such as “ze,” “sie,” etc. represents only one facet of the movement towards gender inclusion in the English language. Other recent linguistic shifts include the widespread use of “cis-” and “trans-” as prefixes, and neologisms such as “polyamorous,” “pansexual,” and “asexual.” These words allow individuals to express and define their gender and sexuality in new ways. They also have valuable collective functions, serving as a shared shorthand for complex identities and relationships, as tools for reshaping social configurations, and touchstones for political movements. For instance, in 2021, when the British Columbia Supreme Court ruled to allow a third adult to be listed on a child’s birth certificate, legal recognition was extended to three-parent families. Inclusive language can also affirm roles that have generally been understood as peripheral to the nuclear family, such as referring to “caregivers” and “guardians,” rather than “parents” or “mothers and fathers,” in acknowledgment of the fact that many children are raised by grandparents, aunts and uncles, or grow up in foster care or in group homes. Ultimately, however, the practice of gender-inclusive translation is not simply a matter of using the latest English terminology in just the right way. Rather it requires reflection on the connotations of words. Consider how gender biases may be insidiously reinforced through apparently neutral adjectives like “caring,” “nurturing” and “bossy” to describe women and “confident,” “assertive” and “visionary” to describe men. Or how a hasty attempt to be inclusive, such as by saying “women and trans women,” can be harmful, even violently so, since it invalidates trans women as women and reifies biological essentialist views of cis-gender women. Conversely, note how the use of common binary gendered third-person singular pronouns (“she/he”) can shore up the social and legal recognition of trans people. Sensitivity to the role of gender and sexuality in a particular text also requires an understanding of both the original context of composition and the scope of the translation’s audience, including its potential or future audience. If you are expecting to address a diverse group of people from across the gender spectrum, practices of gender-inclusive translation can include: Recognizing all self-determined gendered language. When gender pronouns are given in the original text, preserving them in the translation is an act of respect that conveys crucial information to readers about that person’s gender identity. For example: Al shares their pronouns in their email signature; Anna uses both “she” and “they” pronouns. Favouring non-gendered descriptive terms. Instead of assuming the qualities or attributes of binary gender, refer to the specific features that give meaning to the category in question. For example: “people who are pregnant,” rather than “pregnant women”; “child-bearing parents,” rather than “mothers”; “people with prostates,” rather than “men”; “victims or survivors of domestic violence,” rather than “battered women.” Leaning on genderless English. Draw liberally on first-person and second-person plural pronouns (“we” and “you”), which are already gender neutral in English. Whenever the gender identity or the pronouns of a specific person are unknown, use the singular “they” or avoid third-person pronouns altogether to ensure that binary gender is not arbitrarily assigned onto the subject. For example: the student asked to speak with their teacher; the person looked up and smiled at someone in the distance. Above all, gender-inclusive translation involves a commitment to noticing and suspending the assumptions about bodies, gender, and sexuality, and the relationships between them, that are woven into all languages. Given the powerful impact that words can have on how we make sense of ourselves and our connections with others, translation brings a significant opportunity to redress restrictive and often harmful norms and to make space for all genders and sexualities. Respecting human dignity and self-determination, which are at the core of linguistic changes and indeed at the core of all communication, is what matters most. View references Airton, Lee. 2019. Gender: Your Guide. New York: Adams Media. Kapitan, Alex. The Radical Copyeditor Blog (opens in new tab). Kouri-Towe, Natalie and Myloe Martel-Perry. 2021. Better Practices in the Sexuality Classroom: Teaching Resources and Guides for Sustainable and Equitable Learning (opens in new tab). Notes Note 1 See the article “Merriam-Webster dictionary adds 'they' as nonbinary pronoun (opens in new tab)” in The Guardian. Return to note 1 referrer Note 2 See the article “A brief history of singular ‘they’ (opens in new tab)” on the Oxford English Dictionary blog. Return to note 2 referrer Note 3 See the Washington Post article “A guide to how gender-neutral language is developing around the world (opens in new tab).” Return to note 3 referrer Source Natalie Kouri-Towe and Danielle Bobker’s article “Gender Inclusive, Non-Binary, and Gender-Neutral Language in English Writing (opens in new tab)” was originally published in Issue 155 (Summer 2022) of Circuit magazine.
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

Yes, you can be gender-inclusive and use plain language!

An English blog post about how to write for diverse audiences, using plain language and inclusive writing principles Early in my career, I taught in an adult literacy centre. I still remember one encounter that particularly struck me: one with an elderly, somewhat shy man. On his first visit to the centre, he whispered to me that he hadn't learned to read and write when he was young. I showed him letters on a piece of cardstock, and he was able to name them. I showed him combinations of letters, and he could pronounce them. I asked him to read words and then short sentences, and he succeeded. “You can read!” I said proudly. He paused, smiled, and replied, “Maybe… but I don't understand.” This man is far from the only one in this situation: 48% of adults in Canada—that’s almost half the population—have a reading level no higher than Grade 8, which corresponds to the second year of high school in Quebec. Think about it: when our message is too complicated, it’s difficult for nearly half our population to understand what we’re trying to say. We exclude a very large segment of society, and our democracy suffers as a result. Similarly, the words and phrases we choose can create a sense of exclusion when it comes to gender. For example, as the mother of a transgender teenager, I see the extent to which the use of the pronoun “she” brings my daughter profound joy every day, the feeling that she can be herself. My amazing daughter was, and continues to be, the inspiration behind my collaboration with the Interdepartmental Working Group on Inclusive Writing, which I co-chaired. The collaborative efforts of the Working Group, which included over 35 federal, provincial and territorial departments and organizations, culminated in the creation of the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing in the fall of 2022. Recently, I was fortunate to meet Chris Coulter, Senior Communications Advisor at Transport Canada, and Asha St-Hilaire, Senior Strategic Communications Advisor at Shared Services Canada. Chris and Asha are active members of the Plain Language Community of Practice. Together, we worked to dispel a myth! Yes, you can be gender-inclusive and apply plain language principles in your writing. And here are five tips to help you do just that! 1. Use common words, not jargon Don’t you just love it when presenters use acronyms and technical words that hardly anyone understands? Frustrating, right? Imagine what it might be like for the general population reading, watching, or listening to overly complicated information. Enough said! However, when it comes to gender identities, it might be difficult to avoid abbreviations such as “2SLGBTQIA+” or new words. While gender diversity is not new, the expression of these diverse identities is still in its early stages. New words and acronyms have emerged to name these identities, and they’ll likely continue to evolve over time. Why not use the opportunity to educate people by defining acronyms and explaining these new words? The word “Internet” didn’t exist when I started my career. Today, we all know its meaning and use it daily. The more we talk about gender identities, using the right words, the more we become accustomed to them. As we become more and more used to seeing, hearing, and using these words, the more our understanding of them grows. 2. Address your reader directly Addressing the reader is an effective plain language and gender-inclusive technique we often use in government communications. “You” is a pronoun that includes all genders and, in most cases, reduces the length of your sentences. It helps the audience see themselves in the text and relate to what you’re saying. Here’s a quick example: instead of writing “The tenant must keep his apartment clean and tidy,” address the reader and write “You must keep your apartment clean and tidy.” 3. Use the active voice Sentences written in the active voice are usually clearer and more effective than sentences written in the passive voice. The passive voice makes your reader work too hard to understand who is doing what. In the active voice, the subject is the doer of the action: for example, “I love gender-inclusive writing.” That doesn’t mean we should always avoid the passive voice. The passive voice can come in handy as a gender-inclusive technique. For example, instead of writing “The supervisor must give feedback to his employees monthly,” you could use the passive and write “Supervisors’ feedback must be given to employees monthly.” However, the sentence isn’t as easy to understand as in the active voice. There are plenty of gender-inclusive techniques that can help you avoid the passive voice. In the example above, we could have written the following: “Supervisors must give their employees feedback monthly.” You just need to pluralize the noun. Simple, isn’t it? 4. Use shorter words and sentences, and omit unnecessary words Long words and long sentences make information more difficult to read and remember. As government communicators, no doubt you’ve read plenty of long sentences that are difficult to understand and made you furrow your brow. Cut long sentences and create short sentences. Simplify the terminology by using more common synonyms. Omitting unnecessary words is another useful technique. In the example we used in the section on the active voice, we could easily delete the pronoun: “Supervisors must give employees feedback monthly.” The shorter a sentence, the easier it is to read. 5. Choose verbs over nouns, and use lists Nothing’s better than a simple sentence that uses verbs instead of a long sentence with too many nouns, don’t you agree? Here’s an example of a long sentence: ECC is as efficient as it can be within the environment it works in and is constantly working on improvements, automation, and efficiencies. And here’s the plain language version that also uses a list: Our ECC team is as efficient as they can be within their current environment. They always look for ways to: be more efficient improve service find automated solutions Using the imperative is an extremely efficient trick when you want to avoid using a gender-specific pronoun. Instead of writing “The visitor should always keep his dog on leash,” you could write “Always keep your dog on leash.” This technique works especially well when you make a request or give an instruction, an order, or a warning. In conclusion, yes, you can be gender-inclusive and use plain language simultaneously. And these are just a few of the many techniques that can help you. Want to learn more? Check out the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing (opens in new tab) and the Inclusionary (opens in new tab) on the Language Portal of Canada.
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

The singular “they” is gaining acceptance

An English blog post on the growing acceptance of the singular “they.” Everyone knows that in English, third-person singular pronouns are “he,” “she,” “one” and “it.” We’ve moved past the notion that the male pronouns can stand in for all humans. But that leaves us with constructions like the one below, right?    “Everyone should take his or her books.” Well, actually, no. If you do some digging into the history of English usage, you’ll discover that the rule about male pronouns being used to stand in for male and female was an invention of Victorian grammarians. And that it used to be common to use “they” when referring to a person whose gender you didn’t know. As James Harbeck points out in his blog post called “they”, “… for centuries, English speakers used ‘they’ for gender-indeterminate third person singular, and no one complained.” Even Shakespeare used it. Things changed in the 1700s Harbeck goes into a bit of detail, if you want to read more about how this imposed rule came about. Not surprisingly, it was influenced by beliefs, not by speaking and writing patterns that people commonly use. But singular “they” has stood its ground In fact, the singular “they” now has 2 uses: One is for referring to people when you’re not sure of their gender and you don’t want to use “he” Example: “Everyone should take their books.” The other is for referring to people who don’t identify with “he” or “she” as a gender Example: “Chris should take their books.” There are some fancy names for the two uses, but they can be hard to remember, especially if you aren’t into that aspect of grammar. Gretchen McCulloch, a linguist, sums it up nicely, saying that the two types of singular “they” are specific and nonspecific. She gave examples in a tweet, quoted below: “Nonspecific singular they: ‘someone left their umbrella’ Specific singular they: ‘Alex left their umbrella’" Here’s what people are doing now The “rule” that “they” can’t be used in the singular is deeply rooted in people’s minds. So are editors, linguists and style guides saying anything about it? Yes, they are, and they’re certainly saying a lot. It’s been a hot topic among language professionals for some time, and it really peaked in recent years. Here are some of the most significant announcements. The American Dialect Society declared the singular “they” its Word of the Year in 2015; in 2020, they deemed it to be the Word of the Decade for 2010 to 2019 The Associated Press allows “they” as a singular pronoun when a writer is referring to people who don’t use gendered pronouns The American Psychological Association, Modern Languages Association and The Chicago Manual of Style (see changes made to sections 5.51 and 5.266) now endorse using both specific and generic singular “they” The Government of Canada says that gender-specific language should not be used in legislation and offers the singular “they” as one option to avoid this But it looks funny You’ll run into people who say that it’s incorrect or it looks funny or they don’t like it. No one is saying we have to use it. But saying someone can’t or shouldn’t use it is wrong. Learn more Read up on the history of the singular “they” and the discussions language professionals are having about it so that you can decide what you’ll do (and what you’ll say to people who still say it’s wrong to use). I’ve compiled the following list: Over 100 articles on the singular “they” (DOC) And if you’ve found any other resources on the topic, feel free to share them in the comments below.
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

A brief guide to inclusive writing resources

An English blog post about gender-neutral and inclusive writing resources, as well as emerging trends in the field. When the gender of someone you are writing about is unknown or outside the gender binary, it’s important to avoid references to gender and to write inclusively. In the area of gender-inclusive writing, terminology is constantly evolving. For example, a newer variation of “LGBTQ+,” intended to better represent diverse gender identities, is “2SLGBTQI+.” One of the major changes is that “2S” or “Two-Spirited” is placed in front of the more familiar abbreviation. On a similar note, “x” and “@” have been proposed as symbols for gender neutrality, for example, “Mx.” instead of “Mr.” or “Ms.,” and “Latinx” or “Latin@” instead of “Latino” and “Latina.”Note 1 Should you use “Mx.,” “Latinx” or “Latin@” in your writing? That depends. Such expressions have layers of meaning that are different for different people. A good solution would be to turn to reference materials that have the latest information. Here are some resources that may be helpful in navigating new directions in inclusive writing. Conscious Style Guide The Conscious Style Guide website is a compendium of developments in the field of inclusive language. It was founded by Karen Yin, who launched both the website and The Conscious Language Newsletter in 2015. Yin encourages us to think critically about using language in order to avoid unconscious bias. The site also includes the Gender, Sex + Sexuality guide, which focuses specifically on gender inclusivity and lists a wealth of resources. Justice Canada – Legistics The Legistics page on Justice Canada’s website includes sections on gender-neutral languageNote 2 and the singular “they.”Note 3 It’s noteworthy that, according to the section on the singular “they,” the Government of Ontario adopted an official policy of using gender-neutral language in all official publications, including bills and regulations, as early as 1985. A Progressive’s Style Guide A Progressive’s Style Guide (PDF) is a well-known guide started in 2015 by SumOfUs, a global non-profit advocacy organization. The Guide provides information on a range of issues related to inclusive writing and promotes thoughtfulness and openness about how language is used. SumOfUs consulted a large number of resources and provides terms used by activists and terms avoided or questioned by activists in issue areas including age, disability, health, gender and sex. The Language Portal of Canada The federal government’s Language Portal of Canada contains resources on many topics, including inclusive writing, in its Writing Tips Plus tool. Be sure to check out the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing, which provide practical techniques and solutions in this field. One of the resources included in the Guidelines is the Inclusionary, along with its French counterpart the Inclusionnaire. The Inclusionary contains a list of more than 100 gendered words with suggestions for more inclusive versions, such as “anchor” or “anchor person” instead of “anchorman” or “anchorwoman.” United Nations (UN) Guidelines for Gender-Inclusive Language (in six languages) The UN Guidelines for Gender-Inclusive Language provide best practices and strategies. The Guidelines were developed semi-independently in each of the UN’s six official languages and thus “reflect the specificities and unique features of each language.” UN Gender-Sensitive Lexicon The UN’s searchable Gender-Sensitive Lexicon contains 650 terms in English, French, Arabic, Russian and Spanish. The purpose is to fight gender bias and promote gender equality. There are also various associated references. UNTERM UNTERM, which is the United Nations Terminology Database, provides up-to-date terminology relevant to the work of the UN in the six UN official languages, plus German and Portuguese. For example, the research is very recent for the UNTERM entry “genderqueer person,” which is defined as “A person who does not subscribe to conventional gender distinctions but identifies with neither, both or a combination of male and female genders.” The source listed is “Oxford English Dictionary, online version (consulted on 15 June 2022).” The French equivalents provided are “personne de genre queer” and “intergenre,” from a source dated March 2019. Conclusion Since inclusive writing is a very current issue, terminology in this area is subject to change, and it’s vital to keep up with developments. Otherwise, even with the best of intentions, we may inadvertently use hurtful, insensitive or inaccurate language. This blog post provides a few resources to help us all write more inclusively. Notes Note 1 See the article “A guide to how gender-neutral language is developing around the world” in The Washington Post. Return to note 1 referrer Note 2 See the web page Legistics: Gender-neutral Language. Return to note 2 referrer Note 3 See the web page Legistics: Singular “They”. Return to note 3 referrer
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

English then and now

An article on changes in grammar, punctuation, style and usage between 1968 and 2008.
 Note: This article was written in 2008 to mark the fortieth anniversary of the Translation Bureau publication Language Update. In 1968, when Language Update made its debut, I was not yet a writer and editor. I was three. According to my mother, I ran endless laps inside the house and devised new schemes for parting my brother from his candy. Otherwise, not much was happening in my world. I didn’t pose for digital photos in an era when digital conjured up images of thumb-sucking. There were no compact discs to listen to. No one ate pizza pockets or drank soft drinks sweetened with aspartame. There was no googling or faxing, no bungee jumping or break dancing. No one worried about global warming or saved up for a time-share. Lives were arguably simpler, vocabularies indisputably smaller. There’s no question—the English language has changed tremendously in the past four decades. New words, and new uses of old words, have sprung up to match developments in technology, science, economics and culture. But the fundamentals of the language—the rules of grammar and punctuation, the principles of clear style—have changed surprisingly little. Changes in grammar What’s striking about grammar rules from forty years ago is how similar they are to today’s. The guidelines for subject-verb agreement, pronoun case, modifier placement and verb tense are virtually unchanged. Many of the old rules that we now see as outdated (and that persist as grammar myths) had already toppled by 1968. Take none, for instance. Once considered singular, none was accepted forty years ago as a plural when used in a plural sense ("None of the applicants are qualified"). The second edition of Fowler’s Modern English Usage (1965) pulled no punches: "It is a mistake to suppose that the pronoun is singular only and must at all costs be followed by singular verbs, etc.; the Oxford English Dictionary explicitly states that plural construction is commoner." Similarly, rules drummed into earlier generations of pupils, like "don’t split an infinitive" and "don’t end a sentence with a preposition," had gone by the wayside. Eric Partridge, in the sixth edition of Usage and Abusage (1965), noted that we should avoid the split infinitive wherever possible, "but if it is the clearest and the most natural construction, use it boldly. The angels are on our side." (A different celestial phenomenon has been on our side since 1966, when the original Star Trek series aired with its now-famous "to boldly go." Interestingly, Partridge’s choice of boldly in rallying for the split infinitive predated Star Trek by one year.) Grammarians of the day were also pooh-poohing the old prohibition against ending a sentence with a preposition. G. F. Lamb, in his textbook English for General Certificate (1964), brushed it off entirely: "The so-called ‘rule’ that we must not end a sentence with a preposition cannot be justified in English, and is not observed by any good writer." Fowler’s, in a virtual novella on the subject, concluded that the rule had become "a cherished superstition." The only real change in grammar since the late 1960s comes in an area that overlaps with usage and that, like usage, has been influenced by larger forces of society and culture. I’m referring to agreement between a pronoun and a singular antecedent like "everyone" or "each person." The rule back then was simple: use the masculine singular pronoun ("Everyone must bring his own wine to the party"). Since then feminism has outed the sexism implicit in that choice and has put the old practice to rest. But we’ve been left with a void, one that has produced lots of rewriting ("People must bring their own wine") and lots of debate about the ungainly his or her versus the (to some) ungrammatical their. This last option is gaining ground fast and will likely win the day, though for the moment authorities are still bickering. Changes in punctuation There was a time when English writing was scattered (some might say infested) with commas, but that time was not forty years ago. The trend toward cleaner, streamlined sentences was already afoot. Said G. F. Lamb: "The modern tendency is to omit the comma in many instances where earlier generations would have used it." The comma rules in his 1964 grammar book are indistinguishable from ours today. Likewise, what we think of as the new practice of adding "-’s" to names that end with "s" (Keats’s poetry, Charles’s hot tub) was already well established. In fact, it was the very first rule listed in the first and second editions (1959 and 1972) of The Elements of Style, Strunk and White’s now famous little book. Our desire for clean prose is undoubtedly behind the one change that has affected punctuation. Four decades ago periods were used with all abbreviations. Today they have disappeared from acronyms and initialisms (e.g., NATO, DVD, RRSP), perhaps because in our time these forms are so commonplace that we regard them more as words than as true abbreviations. Changes in style When I was three, I knew a thing or two about plain language, though in 1968 what that meant was stern lectures laced with the few mild swear words our Catholic household would allow. Plain language as a stylistic movement took off only in the 1980s. It gathered steam through the 1990s and is now a well-established force in the communications world. Yet the principles of composition listed in Strunk and White’s first and second editions of The Elements of Style read like the contents of a plain language primer: Choose a suitable design and hold to it Use the active voice Put statements in positive form Use definite, specific, concrete language Omit needless words Keep related words together Clear, concise, accessible style was as much an objective in 1968 as in 2008. The techniques for producing that style were just as simple to list . . . and just as difficult to execute. Changes in usage That leaves usage as the only hotbed of change in the past forty years. This isn’t surprising. As John Steinbeck put it, "A writer lives in awe of words for they can be cruel or kind, and they can change their meanings right in front of you. They pick up flavors and odors like butter in a refrigerator." It’s impossible to sum up the usage changes of the past four decades; to do so would require a book—no, books. Instead, here’s a random sampling of usages that were argued, shot down and trampled forty years ago but that have since become accepted, some with little fanfare, others with the kind of muttering acceptance that follows a battle reluctantly conceded. Who today would argue with the following sentence? We hope to contact a high-calibre translator, someone who can be trusted to finalize the translation with speed and hopefully with care. Four decades ago the italicized words were all under siege. Contact as a verb was inching its way toward acceptance, a point the 1965 Fowler’s haltingly conceded. But in 1972 Strunk and White still condemned the word as "vague and self-important. Do not contact anybody; get in touch with him, or look him up, or phone him . . . ." (Notice the outdated use of the masculine him to refer to anybody.)  Calibre, in the sense of "order of merit or quality," riled up Eric Partridge, who wrote (no doubt with pursed lips) that expressions like high-calibre and low-calibre "are not absolutely wrong: they are merely ludicrous." Verbs ending in "-ize," the handiest suffix for verbifying, stir up their fair share of rancour—understandably, since most are neologisms for a time. Finalize was slammed in the 1960s, especially in British English, and has met with only slow acceptance, perhaps because it first appeared in Australia and the United States, those upstart colonies. Today, however, the New Fowler’s Modern English Usage (3rd ed., 1996) notes that "only elderly eyebrows are now raised when the word is used . . . ." That brings us to hopefully. Its use as a sentence adverb, as in the sample sentence above—unlike its fully accepted role as a run-of-the-mill adverb, to describe doing something in a hopeful manner (to gaze hopefully at someone)—was one of the most widely disputed, ardently fought usage points in the past four decades. In the entry for "sentence adverb," the New Fowler’s gives a juicy account of hopefully, calling it "one of the most bitterly contested of all the linguistic battles fought out in the last decades of the 20c." The carnage came in the late 1960s. Oddly, up to then sentence adverbs (like oddly here, plus frankly, actually, thankfully, strictly and the like) had proliferated without much criticism, but for some reason hopefully drew attack. It was as if every suspicion of change during that turbulent decade, every fear of the masses taking over power and culture and language, was concentrated in one annihilating beam trained on this harmless, optimistic word. The war over hopefully is done, say current authorities, and the sentence adverb is here to stay. But this word’s journey is only a slightly exaggerated version of what happens every time a point of language shifts. Condemnation, then debate, then tolerance, then acceptance—these are the stages that flow from our paradoxical need to keep language on the leash of standards while allowing it the freedom to roam.
Source: Peck’s English Pointers (articles and exercises on the English language)

Gender-neutral writing: The pronoun problem

An article on how to work around the lack of a gender-neutral singular pronoun.
 For most of us reared in the 1970s and 1980s, with Ms. magazine, All in the Family reruns and the spread of political correctness, gender-neutral writing is a no-brainer. We don’t automatically refer to people as he and him, and we usually opt for gender-inclusive terms like police officer instead of policeman. Same goes for our younger colleagues. But those schooled in earlier decades learned different lessons. What’s more, all of us, regardless of age, are influenced by the traditional approaches to English grammar and vocabulary that we encounter in material written before sexist language was on the radar (or before there even was radar). No matter what your field, your workplace writing has to be free from gender bias and stereotyping to be viewed as credible and professional. This article, one of two on gender-neutral writing, focuses on the grammatical side of the issue. Working around the pronoun gap Loving English is like loving your family: you have to accept a lot of flaws and peculiarities. One of the most enduring is the lack of a gender-inclusive singular pronoun that can complete a sentence like this: Each writer should develop  own techniques for avoiding bias in writing. We have he and she, which are singular but gender-specific; we have it, which is singular but not used for people (at least not in polite discourse); and we have they, which is gender-inclusive but plural. That leaves us with … nothing. There is no singular personal pronoun that encompasses both genders, and attempts to introduce one (among the hopefuls: thon, hes, zhe, hu) have fizzled as fast as the average infomercial diet. English writers, being nothing if not resourceful, have developed a number of workarounds for sentences like the one above. The norm until the final quarter of the twentieth century was to use his, but because of the sexism inherent in preferring the masculine, that approach is now shunned. Use a plural antecedent. Individual writers should develop their own techniques for avoiding bias in writing. Eliminate the pronoun. Each writer should develop techniques for avoiding bias in writing. Each writer should develop some favourite [personal, individual, preferred, etc.] techniques for avoiding bias in writing. Switch to first person, second person or imperative. We should develop our own techniques for avoiding bias in writing. You should develop your own techniques for avoiding bias in writing. Work to develop your own techniques for avoiding bias in writing. Use his or her (when nothing else works, and if the result isn’t too awkward). Each writer should develop his or her own techniques for avoiding bias in writing. The singular they Absent from the list above is the option exercised most frequently by English speakers, and increasingly by English writers, though some still fret over the matter: Each writer should develop their own tools for avoiding bias in writing. It would be easy to write articles (plural), if not treatises (plural), about the history and acceptability of using they (and related pronouns them, their, theirs, themselves) to refer to singular antecedents. Here’s the Twitter version: The singular they is fine in speech; It’s equally fine in general writing; BUT It’s still avoided by some, especially in formal writing. In the "singular they" war, the antagonists used to divide into the permissive linguists and usage gurus on one side, and the traditionalist grammarians and copy editors on the other. No more. Editorially conservative publications like the Washington Post have accepted the singular they, which was voted 2015 Word of the Year by the American Dialect Society. Nowadays, even persnickety editors and language professionals are fine with the construction if it sounds natural, if no other approaches work well and if it’s a way of avoiding the clunky he or she. Here’s a rundown of where some current sources stand on using the singular they (ST) in formal writing. In favour Copyediting newsletter (“Singular They, Them, Their, and …” and articles linked to therein, https://www.copyediting.com/singular-they-them-their-and/): This well-respected publication and website for U.S. copy editors notes that ST has reached a tipping point in its acceptability. Fowler’s Modern English Usage (4th ed., 2015): Approves ST with few apologies or caveats, citing Oxford English Dictionary, which tracks ST from sixteenth century on. Says of ST: “The process now seems irreversible.” Justice Canada ("Gender-neutral language," http://canada.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp-pr/csj-sjc/legis-redact/legistics/p1p...): Presents ST as first option for dealing with troublesome agreement like that in the sentence above. Law Society of British Columbia ("Respectful Language Guideline," Appendix A, https://www.lawsociety.bc.ca/page.cfm?cid=1005&t=Respectful-Language-Gui...): Finds ST most acceptable when used with "gender-indefinite antecedents" such as any, each, every, and with singular indefinite pronouns such as anyone, everybody, nobody, someone. Against Practical Grammar: A Canadian Writer’s Resource (3rd ed., 2014): Presents ST as an error in formal English. The Chicago Manual of Style: Recommended ST in 14th edition but recanted in 15th and now 16th editions, which both say ST is considered unacceptable in formal writing. (It can’t be coincidental that the relevant sections of both recent editions were written by Bryan Garner; see "Wishy-washy" below.) Yahoo! Style Guide ("Write gender-neutral copy," https://shopping.yahoo.com/9780312569846-yahoo-style-guide/): Calls ST "a grammatically controversial usage that could provoke criticism." Suggests avoiding it by using other tactics. Wishy-washy Canadian Press Stylebook (17th ed., 2013): Under "Sexism" advises rewording to avoid his or her and adds: "As a last resort, they (them, their) is an increasingly acceptable alternative to he (him, his)." For or against? It’s hard to tell. Editing Canadian English (3rd ed., 2015): Acknowledges that ST has always existed in informal speech and notes its use in informal writing “as a way to circumvent using he or she . . . ” The descriptor “informal” suggests unease about accepting the practice in formal writing. Garner’s Modern English Usage (4th ed., 2016): Says in "Sexism" that ST promises to become the ultimate solution to the agreement and gender problem. But then warns in "Concord" (B) that the lack of agreement is a "seeming sloppiness" that should be used "cautiously because some people may doubt your literacy." Throws up hands in "Pronouns" (D): "Disturbing though these developments [in using the ST] may be to purists, they’re irreversible. And nothing that a grammarian says will change them." Oxford Guide to Canadian English Usage (2nd ed., 2007): In entry for everyone, everybody suggests, through overall tone and emphasis on ST’s history pre–eighteenth century, that the practice is okay. But says that most usage guides "evade the question of what to do in formal writing"—as does this guide itself. Some thoughts from your author I spent my first twenty years as a copy editor and grammar instructor avoiding the singular they and counselling against it in formal writing. Now I’m a convert. For one thing, many of my clients have shifted to more conversational writing, especially for their online material, and the singular they suits their tone. Further, I agree with Fowler’s and Garner’s that the trend toward the construction is irreversible, and I’m willing to change with the times. But I’m willing not because it’s easier to cave than to stand strong (I will never swallow the ungrammatical "feeling badly," for instance) but because there are sound arguments to consider. One involves the history of the usage. In a concise and readable account in the New York Times Magazine (July 26, 2009, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/26/magazine/26FOB-onlanguage-t.html), Patricia T. O’Conner and Stewart Kellerman explain that for centuries the universal English pronoun for singular and plural, masculine and feminine, was they. Then along came Anne Fisher (yes, a woman), who in her 1745 grammar book prescribed he as the pronoun of choice to agree with singular indefinite pronouns. Suddenly a practice that had been natural and accepted, embraced by authors from Chaucer to Shakespeare (and later Austen), was smeared. Viewed this way, the singular they may be an "error" in the same way that the split infinitive or the sentence-ending preposition was, until half a century ago, an error: early grammarians labelled it as such with little heed for natural English. Another argument is that we, in western society at least, are questioning the notion of gender as binary. If individuals don’t identify with being a she or a he, what are we to do—deny those people a pronoun? Of course not. They is an elegant choice. A final argument, one I’ve not yet encountered outside my own mind, concerns the similarity between singular indefinite pronouns (e.g., everyone, somebody) and collective nouns (e.g., team, committee, department). It’s a contradictory yet undisputed point of grammar that collective nouns are treated as singular when their meaning is singular and plural when their meaning is plural: This class is designed for people at the beginner and intermediate levels. It is not suitable for experienced distance runners. (class is singular) The class have wasted two hours arguing over the characteristics of proper footwear. They simply cannot agree. (class is plural) I can’t help but wonder: if collective nouns can change their number according to their meaning, why can’t indefinite pronouns, such as everyone? Like collective nouns, these indefinites convey the sense of more than one, which is why treating them as singular seems unnatural if not illogical. English has other indefinite pronouns that can be either singular or plural according to meaning (e.g., all, any, some, more, most). In fact, in recent decades we’ve seen the once singular none slide into this "sometimes singular, sometimes plural" category. If it can change, why not the other indefinites? That’s my modest proposal for balancing the twin imperatives of grammatical integrity and gender neutrality. Related quiz Test yourself—Gender-neutral writing: The pronoun problem
Source: Peck’s English Pointers (articles and exercises on the English language)

Gender-neutral writing: Questions of usage

An article on eliminating gender bias in writing.
 Read up on gender-neutral English and you’re bound to run into the history of the word man. Briefly, it goes like this. In Old English man meant a human being, male or female. The sex-differentiated terms were wer and wif, for males and females respectively. Around the late thirteenth century, wer fell out of use (though as horror fans know, we kept werewolf) and man took its place. Thus, for a time man carried two meanings: the newer one (male human beings) and the older one (all human beings). Now the newer meaning is the predominant one. Critics of gender-neutral usage—those for whom the prospect of changing workman to worker is a needless if not infuriating restriction of personal freedom, in a league with obeying "no smoking" signs or yielding to pedestrians—love this history. They will trot out the dual-sex meaning of man to defend all manner of gender-biased terms, including businessman, fireman, mailman, mankind. Such terms don’t refer exclusively to men, the critics say; they refer to both sexes, because that’s what man used to mean. Comforting as this argument may be to some, it skips over the fact that in our time the male meaning of man outweighs any other. As Editing Canadian English (2nd ed., 2000) notes: "Research has confirmed what was long suspected: when they hear or read the generic man, people form mental pictures of males." Anyone who doubts this should consider this oft-cited (though fictitious) title of a medical paper: "Development of the uterus in rats, guinea pigs, and men." To sidestep the perceived bias, not to mention lack of logic, that results from referring to people as men in modern English, government bodies, companies, publishers and academic institutions have made gender-neutral vocabulary a requirement. Putting that requirement into practice means knowing which words to replace and which to leave alone. Test yourself To measure your GQ (gender quotient), decide which of the following words you would change, in most circumstances, to a gender-neutral alternative. Answer yes, no or iffy. chairman man-made manufactured midwife actress dude manpower manslaughter Mrs. fisherman Iffy. When referring to the position in the abstract, use the gender-neutral chair or chairperson. But if you know and want to specify the sex of the person holding the position, chairman or chairwoman may be fine. Above all, respect the official job title if there is one: if an organization elects a Chair of the Board, consistently refer to that person as chair. Yes. There are many synonyms that allow for the possibility that a woman had a hand in making the thing. Try fabricated, machine-made, artificial, factory-produced, synthetic. No. Don’t assume that all terms that contain man derive from the word man. Words such as manufacture, manipulate, manual and manuscript come from manus, the Latin for "hand" (making manufactured another option for man-made in question 2). No. Midwife is a Middle English combination of the Old English mid (with) and wif (woman). It means a person of either sex who is with a woman giving birth. Iffy. Actress is a feminine form of actor; actor refers to either sex. Many feminine forms, including authoress, poetess and aviatrix, have exited current English, but actress is one of a few to hang on. For how much longer? One Los Angeles Times article says that "over the last decade or so, most thespians of the female persuasion now refer to themselves as actors, not actresses" (see http://articles.latimes.com/2009/jan/18/entertainment/ca-actress18). Still, we need only look at acting awards to see how divided the usage is. The Screen Actors Guild Awards honour the best male actor and best female actor, while the Oscars go to best actors and actresses. No. For teens and 20-somethings, dude has become the unisex equivalent of guy (as in you guys, which we older dudes use for males, females or both). Says a University of Pittsburgh professor who has tracked the word, "Dude is used mostly by young men to address other young men; however, its use has expanded so that it is now used as a general address term for a group (same or mixed gender), and by and to women" (http://www.pitt.edu/~kiesling/dude/dude.pdf). This gender-inclusivity is confirmed by a later study, entitled "Dude, Katie! Your dress is so cute: why dude became an exclamation," by Muffy Siegel, and no, I am not making that up (see https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Dude,+Katie!+Your+dress+is+so+cute%3A+why...). Yes. Like man-made, this word has many gender-neutral synonyms, among them labour, staff, human resources, workers, personnel, workforce. No. There is no synonym for manslaughter, a category of homicide that comes with a specific legal definition and a complex history of judicial precedent. Any attempt to create a gender-neutral synonym would distort meaning and sacrifice correctness and clarity. Similar words for which we have no reasonable synonyms, and which we should therefore leave alone, are manhole, defenceman and craftsmanship. Iffy. Because the traditional titles Mrs. and Miss indicate marital status, they are not equivalent to Mr., which is silent on whether a man has said "I do." The default honorific for women has therefore become Ms. This blend of Miss and Mrs., until recently thought to have originated in 1949, has now been traced back to a 1901 Massachusetts newspaper article that proposed it as a title that disregarded marital state (see http://www.visualthesaurus.com/cm/wordroutes/hunting-the-elusive-first-ms/). Still, as ubiquitous as Ms. has become, there are women who prefer to be called Mrs. or Miss. So how do you handle women’s titles? If the individual has indicated a preference, then respect it; otherwise, use Ms. And don’t assume that Mrs. is acceptable for any female who is married. There are many happily wedded women (your author included) who would no more call themselves Mrs. than they would wear a whalebone corset. Iffy. Who’d have pegged the rugged world of fisheries as the crucible for gender-neutral language in Canada? Yet that’s what it became in the late 1990s, when federal efforts to replace fisherman with fisher in government documents, coupled with a high-profile Supreme Court decision on native fishing rights, caused a riptide of dissent over what to call people who fish. To complicate matters, many women in the industry resented having their job title changed and insisted on being called fishermen. The "Fissure over Fisher," as it was called in an article on the CBC treatment of the issue (http://www.cbc.ca/news2/indepth/words/fishermen), has since narrowed but not closed. On one side is the government approach: fish harvester is now the official term for Fisheries and Oceans Canada (confirmed in an email to me from the department’s Communications Branch, June 21, 2013). On the other side is general publishing: The Canadian Press Stylebook (16th ed., 2010) states under "Sexism" that "there is not an entirely satisfactory substitute for fisherman, although fisher, fish harvester, fish industry worker, fishing licensees or the phrase fishermen and women are all possibilities"; the Oxford Guide to Canadian English Usage (2nd ed., 2007), in its entry on job titles, singles out fisher as a term that has yet to gain wide acceptance. Even this brief test shows that stamping out gender bias can be tricky. As always, it’s a question of bearing in mind audience, message and clarity, those familiar ingredients of good writing. And as always, it’s a question of having reliable resources. One I can recommend is the Law Society of British Columbia’s "Respectful Language Guideline" (https://www.lawsociety.bc.ca/page.cfm?cid=1005&t=Respectful-Language-Gui...). In particular, check out Appendix A ("Gender-Neutral Language") for a list of terms to avoid and their gender-neutral substitutes. Related quiz Test yourself—Gender-neutral writing: Questions of usage
Source: Peck’s English Pointers (articles and exercises on the English language)

Using unbiased language: It’s not a slippery slope

A blog post that debunks the fallacy that using unbiased language is a slippery slope It’s almost inevitable. People who say “we’ve gotten too PC” about language will, at some point in the discussion, claim that if we stop using certain words or phrases, we’ll run out of words to write and say. Arriving at this spot Who’s having these discussions and how does this line of thinking work? I help moderate several editing communities of practice on social media. About once a month, an editor will post a question like “Do we still say [fill in the blank]?” Or they’ll post an article about biased language or oppressive language. These discussions are usually about words related to people our society has marginalized. As editors, we have a duty to stay on top of the latest shifts in language, including expanding our own awareness of words and phrases that seem innocuous but are hurtful and harmful to our fellow human beings. The discussions are usually quite informative and useful. But at some point, someone will usually say that we’re all being “too politically correct.” Often included with this pronouncement is the claim that if we ban certain words, we won’t have any words left. The slippery slope This is the form of the argument we usually see: “If we stop using word x because it upsets a small number of people, then we’re on the slippery slope of political correctness, and soon we won’t have any words left.” Let’s break this argument down, starting with the slippery slope section. Here’s the problem with it: citing a slippery slope that leads to undesirable consequences is a logical fallacy. In fact, it’s so basic that it’s taught in introductory philosophy courses. That’s where I first learned about it. And if you google “slippery slope,” the first thing that comes up is the Wikipedia article on the fallacy. Word shortages OK, so we won’t use the term slippery slope. What about this claim that we’ll run out of ways to say certain things? There are only so many words at our disposal, right? I find that hard to believe. After all, the Oxford English Dictionary contains over 600,000 words. And it adds hundreds of new words each year. I can has experts?Note * I decided to ask a couple of experts what they thought about the risk of running out of words. As lexicographers, these two have more knowledge about words than most of us combined. Katherine Barber(Sign-in to X required), former editor-in-chief of the Canadian Oxford Dictionary, has this to say: “The statement that we soon won’t have any words left is staggeringly hyperbolic and ridiculous. Of course, we will have words; people concerned about sensitivity are suggesting new replacement words, not just eliminating words.” And Peter Sokolowski(Sign-in to X required), editor at large at Merriam-Webster, says this: “Becoming aware of the potential offensiveness of language makes us all better communicators and allows us to make our points more clearly without the possible distractions that can weigh down our writing. Clear writing is good writing, for which there will always be enough words.” If editors can’t think of another word to substitute for the one they want to use but they know is hurtful, either they have a small grasp of English vocabulary or something else is going on. That something else might be their own biases. We have a huge set of words to choose from. What less-biased words and phrases have you learned recently? Note: This post was originally published in The Editors’ Weekly, the official blog of Editors Canada. Note * “I can has?” was a popular Internet phrase meaning “Can I have?” in the LOLspeak dialect. Return to note * referrer
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

10 interesting facts about the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing

An English blog post presenting 10 interesting facts about the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing. Questions about how to deal with gender may arise in different writing situations, such as when you’re drafting a letter to a group of individuals of diverse genders, compiling the results of a survey conducted with a specific population, or writing the biography of a non-binary person. These are just some of the writing situations that can be addressed using the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing (opens in new tab), published on the Language Portal of Canada. The Guidelines include inclusive writing principles and techniques, as well as a number of resources. Here's an overview of 10 interesting facts about the Guidelines. History 1) The Guidelines for Inclusive Writing are the result of the collaborative efforts of a working group. The Interdepartmental Working Group on Inclusive Writing is made up of more than 35 federal, provincial and territorial organizations, and is co-chaired by Women and Gender Equality Canada, Canadian Heritage and Public Services and Procurement Canada (represented by the Translation Bureau’s Language Portal of Canada). Both the English and French versions of the Guidelines have been available online on the Language Portal of Canada website since fall 2022. 2) Before the Guidelines were published, different groups within the federal public service were asked to comment on the contents. These groups included: language and communications specialists; departments and agencies; and equity, diversity and inclusion networks. Principles and techniques 3) The Guidelines include a variety of techniques for writing inclusively in English and French. These techniques are not revolutionary. They’re already out there and include methods such as rewriting a sentence, using the singular “they,” and tailoring a message to a target audience. The techniques are considered possible solutions, rather than absolute rules. 4) Each technique has advantages and disadvantages. No solution is perfect, and no solution will work in every situation. One of the principles in the Guidelines is to apply the technique or techniques that work best, taking into account the nature of the text and the target audience. 5) One of the five main principles in the Guidelines is to write clearly and effectively. The goal of inclusive writing is, of course, to be inclusive, so the message has to be accessible to everyone in the target audience. The Guidelines make it clear that accessibility must be taken into consideration and that a piece of writing should not be needlessly complex or dense. Inclusive writing techniques need to be carefully selected to ensure that the message is understood and that clarity is maintained. 6) The Guidelines include new techniques for addressing or referring to non-binary people. These techniques include using the singular “they,” neopronouns, such as “ze” or “hir,” and gender-inclusive courtesy titles, such as “Mx.” But before you use any of these techniques, it’s important to ask the individual what their preference is and follow their lead, as recommended in the Guidelines. 7) There’s also a quick reference sheet available for use online or in printable PDF format. The quick reference sheet (opens in new tab) summarizes the main principles of inclusive writing, provides examples of practical techniques and contains a list of resources to help you write inclusively. You can use the reference sheet online or download it to your computer for use offline. Resources 8) The Inclusionary is one of many online resources that accompany the Guidelines. The Inclusionary (opens in new tab) is a very useful collection of inclusive solutions to gendered words. You can search in the index or by keyword. Here’s an example from the Inclusionary: Examples and solutions - Inclusive Writing Examples and solutions Gendered sentence Inclusive solutions A businesswoman or businessman needs strong leadership skills. A business person needs strong leadership skills. A business executive needs strong leadership skills. A business leader needs strong leadership skills. An entrepreneur needs strong leadership skills. Businessmen will have to pay closer attention to supply chain issues. Business people will have to pay closer attention to supply chain issues. Business leaders will have to pay closer attention to supply chain issues. Entrepreneurs will have to pay closer attention to supply chain issues. The business community will have to pay closer attention to supply chain issues. The business world will have to pay closer attention to supply chain issues. 9) In addition to the Guidelines, several resources on respectful and inclusive vocabulary can be used. A glossary (opens in new tab) defines terms used in the Guidelines and includes references to related articles. The Guide on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Terminology (opens in new tab) lists terms related to equity, diversity, accessibility and inclusion, along with usage notes. The Gender-inclusive writing (opens in new tab) section in the Collection of Canadian language resources features a host of guides, glossaries and other resources from different Canadian organizations. The Our Languages blog has some posts about inclusive writing, including A brief guide to inclusive writing resources (opens in new tab). Writing Tips Plus includes information on topics, such as gender-inclusive nouns (opens in new tab). Evolution 10) The Guidelines will continue to be updated. Both language and the realities that language describes are constantly evolving. Only time will tell which terms or techniques will be adopted into common usage. Adapted by Amanda Kenney, Language Portal of Canada
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

madam (noun): gender-inclusive solutions

Gender-inclusive alternatives to madam (noun).
Source: Inclusionary (collection of gender-inclusive solutions) – Writing Tips Plus

woman of action (noun phrase): gender-inclusive solutions

Gender-inclusive alternatives to woman of action (noun phrase).
Source: Inclusionary (collection of gender-inclusive solutions) – Writing Tips Plus

woman of letters (noun phrase): gender-inclusive solutions

Gender-inclusive alternatives to woman of letters (noun phrase).
Source: Inclusionary (collection of gender-inclusive solutions) – Writing Tips Plus

“Latinx”: What does it mean, and how is it pronounced?

An English blog post about the term “Latinx” and gender-inclusive writing in Spanish. You may have recently read this term, or heard people saying “Latin-ex” out loud and been confused. Spanish is my second language, and while I was familiar with the writing convention, I was confused when I started hearing Anglophones in social activism and in news media pronouncing the letter “x,” and using its name rather than its phonetic value. I’ve never heard any word written with an “x” pronounced this way in Spanish, so what’s going on here? “Latino” and “Latina” Latino is short for latinoamericano and refers to the culture and people of Latin America, which comprises the countries in the Americas where the official language is Spanish or Portuguese. As a borrowed word with grammatical gender, it’s unique in English because it isn’t anglicized and maintains its masculine and feminine forms, “Latino” and “Latina,” respectively. Binary grammatical gender Like French, Spanish has a grammatical gender system, which is binary. There are two categories—masculine and feminine—for all things, and these categories are most often represented by a final “o” or “a.” Words that modify or refer to one another must agree in gender. Grammatical gender also corresponds to human gender, and when it comes to talking about mixed-gender groups or a generic person, the masculine gender is the default. Therefore, los latinos or los latinoamericanos (masculine, plural) is the standard way to refer to Latin American people as a group. Gender neutrality Other posts on the Our Languages blog have been about gender-neutral writing in English and French: “Making letters and emails gender-inclusive (opens in new tab),” “Embracing the singular ‘they’ as a gender-neutral pronoun (opens in new tab)” and “Respecter la non-binarité de genre en français (opens in new tab)” (available in French only). As with French, some see the default use of the masculine gender in Spanish as inherently exclusionary when applied to people. Additionally, non-binary people are left without any options. Several solutions for more inclusive writing in Spanish have been used, such as “o/a” or the at symbol (@) because it looks like both an “a” and an “o.” Replacing the gender-marking vowel with an “x” has also become popular. “X” equals the unknown This comes from a feminist Spanish writing convention wherein all vowels that mark the gender of a generic person, or group of people, are replaced with the letter “x,” the symbol for the unknown in mathematics. Los latinos becomes lxs latinxsspell l-x-s l-a-t-i-n-x-s. However, even Spanish speakers who write this way don’t pronounce the “x,” because as a consonant replacing a vowel, it doesn’t follow the rules of Spanish pronunciation. The letter is being used for its symbolic value, rather than its phonetic value. Sometimes in a speech or announcement to a group of people, a speaker will say both standard gender variants of a noun, a phenomenon we’re familiar with in French in Canada. But in everyday speech, most people still follow standard grammar and pronounce the at symbols or x’s as o’s. In Spanish, los latinos and lxs latinxsspell l-x-s l-a-t-i-n-x-s are pronounced identically. There is a movement to create a neutral, pronounceable, grammatical gender marker, to be used for mixed gender groups and non-binary individuals. The most popular option is to replace gender-marking vowels with e’s, as in les latines. These new options are very controversial. They are debated heavily and are not accepted by the Real Academia Española. It’s interesting, then, that the term “Latinx” has caught on in English and is being pronounced “Latin-ex.” The pronunciation of the letter “x” as “ex” is strange to me, but I think I understand why it happens. “Latinx” as an English term From an Anglophone perspective, there’s an instinct to neutralize terms that vary based on gender, especially after decades of purging gender variance from English professional terms, promoting acceptance of non-binary people, and moving toward gender-neutral writingNote 1 overall. “Latin” is a gender-neutral word in English, but it has been replaced by “Latino” and “Latina” when they refer to people. Because these words describe an ethnic identity partly based on shared language, it’s meaningful that they be borrowed directly, rather than translated, from Spanish. And now the term “Latinx” is emerging as a non-binary replacement for “Latino” and “Latina.” “Latinx” was first used in English in social activism, so from the moment it entered English, the meaning of the “x” made the vocalization of this letter seem important and obvious to English speakers. They may have asked themselves, “Why change the spelling for a specific goal if it can’t be articulated in speech?” But looking at a single word obscures the rest of the Spanish grammatical gender system, and therefore the pronunciation problem—how would the “x” be pronounced between consonants in plural Spanish words such as lxs empleadxsspell l-x-s e-m-p-l-e-a-d-x-s or unxs amigxsspell u-n-x-s a-m-i-g-x-s? Perhaps the “e” in place of the “x” will catch on more in the Spanish-speaking world and will then make its way into borrowed words in English. No matter the direction, it will be interesting to see how things progress simultaneously in both linguistic spheres. Do similar pronunciation phenomena occur in borrowings between English and French in Canada? As a closely related language, French has a similar story to Spanish when it comes to gender-neutral writing,Note 2 but are there any differences? Does the Canadian linguistic or cultural context play a unique role in this movement in French in Canada? Notes Note 1 See the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing (opens in new tab), published on the Language Portal of Canada, Translation Bureau, Public Services and Procurement Canada Return to note 1 referrer Note 2 For information on inclusive language in French, consult Michael David Miller’s Guide de recherche en écriture inclusive (in French only). Return to note 2 referrer
Source: Our Languages blog (posts from our contributors)

Gender-inclusive writing: Use an article

An article on how to eliminate gendered pronouns and write inclusively by using an article.
 On this page Introduction Guidelines for using an article Additional information Introduction Sometimes you can easily make a sentence gender-inclusive by using an article instead of a pronoun. Try replacing the personal pronoun with a definite article (“the”) or an indefinite article (“a” or “an”). Examples of gendered sentences and inclusive solutions Gendered sentence Inclusive solution If a self-employed individual makes a claim for special benefits, his benefit level will be based on eligible earnings from self-employment and employment as an employee. If a self-employed individual makes a claim for special benefits, the benefit level will be based on eligible earnings from self-employment and employment as an employee. A passport can be refused if an applicant is found to have made false statements on his or her passport application. A passport can be refused if an applicant is found to have made false statements on the passport application. A band chief must submit his or her governance improvement plan for band council review A band chief must submit a governance improvement plan for band council review. Guidelines for using an article You can’t use articles to replace the words “he” or “she,” but you can often use them to replace the words “his” or “her.” If your sentence is short and simple, you may not need to use gendered pronouns to communicate your intended meaning; you can try using “a” or “the.” But read the sentence back carefully to make sure it doesn’t sound ambiguous or unnatural. Additional information Inclusive writing – Guidelines and resources Inclusive writing: Glossary
Source: Writing Tips Plus (English language problems and rules)

Gender-inclusive writing: Use the singular “they”

An article on how to eliminate gendered pronouns and write inclusively by using the singular “they.”
 On this page Introduction Guidelines for using “they” as a singular pronoun Difference between generic “they” and specific “they” Historical context Note about “he or she” Additional information Introduction In traditional English grammar, there’s no third-person singular pronoun that is gender-neutral. This creates challenges for writing in a gender-inclusive way, particularly when you aren’t sure of the gender of the person being referred to. A long-established solution is the use of “they” and its forms (“them,” “their,” “theirs,” “themselves”) as singular pronouns. Although “they” is most often used as a plural pronoun, there is near-consensus among language authorities today that it can and should be used as a singular pronoun in formal writing. In many cases, substituting a singular “they” for the gendered pronouns “he,” “she” and “he or she” is the easiest and most effective technique for making a sentence gender-inclusive. Examples of gendered sentences and their inclusive solutions Gendered sentence Inclusive solution If any participant still has concerns, he or she should speak to the facilitator after the group meeting. If any participant still has concerns, they should speak to the facilitator after the group meeting. Every subscriber will have had the monthly newsletter delivered to her. Every subscriber will have had the monthly newsletter delivered to them. Everyone should bring his or her access card. Everyone should bring their access card. Each presenter should bring 30 copies of his paper to the conference. Each presenter should bring 30 copies of their paper to the conference. We are asking everyone to double-check that the certificate he or she has received is actually his or hers. We are asking everyone to double-check that the certificate they have received is actually theirs. An introvert usually needs a lot of time to himself or herself. An introvert usually needs a lot of time to themselves [or themself]. Guidelines for using “they” as a singular pronoun Even when “they” is used in the singular, verbs that follow it should always be plural (for example, “are” rather than “is”; “have” rather than “has”). Example of a gendered sentence and an inclusive solution Gendered sentence Inclusive solution Over the course of a work day, a manager will find that she has to deal with a lot of unexpected situations. Over the course of a work day, a manager will find that they have to deal with a lot of unexpected situations. There is no situation in English when it would be correct to write “they is” or “they has,” and that does not change as we expand our use of the singular “they” in formal writing. It should also be noted that the singular “they” has two possible reflexive forms: “themselves” (the standard form) and “themself”. Although “themself” is not yet in widespread use and is labelled non-standard in most dictionaries, it has been approved for use by some major style manuals. Sometimes, especially when you have more than one noun in a sentence, the singular “they” can make the sentence ambiguous. Consider this example: Example of a gendered sentence and an inclusive solution Gendered sentence Inclusive but unclear solution If a person cannot carry out essential duties, he must be reassigned. If a person cannot carry out essential duties, they must be reassigned. What must be reassigned? The duties or the person? And sometimes, the problem of ambiguity exists in the sentence from the beginning. While the singular “they” can make the unclear sentence inclusive, you still have to deal with the separate problem of ambiguity. Consider this example: Example of a gendered sentence and an inclusive solution Gendered and unclear sentence Inclusive and unclear solution If a dispute arises between the client and the service provider, he or she must notify the board in writing. If a dispute arises between the client and the service provider, they must notify the board in writing. The two sentences above with the singular “they” are gender-inclusive, but they still have problems with clarity. In such sentences, the meaning might be clear from the context, so “they” might still be a useable solution. But for any writing where greater accuracy is needed, a different gender-inclusive technique should be considered: Examples of gendered sentences and inclusive solutions Gendered sentence Inclusive but unclear solution Inclusive and clear solution If a person cannot carry out essential duties, he must be reassigned. If a person cannot carry out essential duties, they must be reassigned. A person who cannot carry out essential duties must be reassigned. When a dispute arises between the client and the service provider, he or she must notify the board in writing. When a dispute arises between the client and the service provider, they must notify the board in writing. When a dispute arises between the client and the service provider, the client must notify the board in writing. Difference between generic “they” and specific “they” In the examples in this article, we’ve been using the pronoun “they” to be inclusive in situations where gender is unclear or unknown. This is sometimes called the generic use of “they,” and it’s valuable for gender-inclusive and clear writing in general. But the singular “they” is also used as the chosen pronoun by many individuals who don’t identify with the pronouns “he” or “she,” especially by individuals who are non-binary. This is sometimes called the specific use of the singular “they.” Although the two usages follow the same grammatical rules, they’re distinct and employed for different reasons and in different contexts. For more discussion of the specific use of the singular “they,” please see the article Gender-inclusive writing: Guidelines for writing to or about non-binary individuals. Historical context The singular “they” has a long history in written English. It has been used by many of the most recognized writers in the English language: Chaucer, Shakespeare, Swift, Byron, Austen, Wilde, Auden. The use of the singular “they” began to be discouraged in the late 1700s by language authorities who favoured the use of “he” as the default pronoun of choice. In recent years, the singular “they” has regained almost all of its acceptability, although this process is still ongoing. Most English-language style guides today recommend the use of the singular “they” as the most straightforward technique for gender-inclusive writing. Note about “he or she” At one time, many writers fell back on the construction “he or she” as a more inclusive alternative to the default “he.” Today, however, almost all style guides recommend against the use of “he or she,” which is often awkward to integrate into more complex sentences and which is not inclusive of individuals who do not identify with either pronoun. Additional information Inclusive writing – Guidelines and resources Inclusive writing: Glossary Gender-inclusive writing: Guidelines for writing to or about non-binary individuals Personal pronouns The singular “they” is gaining acceptance
Source: Writing Tips Plus (English language problems and rules)

Gender-inclusive writing: Pluralize the noun

An article on how to eliminate gendered pronouns and write inclusively by pluralizing the noun.
 On this page Introduction Guidelines for pluralizing the noun Additional information Introduction You can often avoid using gendered pronouns by pluralizing the noun that the pronoun refers to. This is because the singular pronouns “he” and “she” are gendered in English, but the plural pronoun “they” is not. Pluralizing the noun can therefore be a quick and easy way to make your sentence inclusive without rewriting it. Examples of gendered sentences and inclusive solutions Gendered sentence Inclusive solution The supervisor must give feedback to her employees monthly. Supervisors must give feedback to their employees monthly. Every visitor must report to the reception desk to receive his temporary pass. All visitors must report to the reception desk to receive their temporary pass. A public official must conduct himself with integrity in the performance of his duties. Public officials must conduct themselves with integrity in the performance of their duties. The applicant must send her application by December 31. Applicants must send their application by December 31. The advisor must inform the graduate student of her responsibilities in regard to course work. The advisor must inform graduate students of their responsibilities in regard to course work. Guidelines for pluralizing the noun Making a noun plural can work well in a formal text that sets out instructions or guidelines. In this kind of writing, you’re usually speaking in a general and collective way, and the intended meaning doesn’t really change when the noun is made plural. But in some cases, pluralizing a noun can lead to a significant change in meaning by shifting emphasis away from the individual and toward the collective. This is especially true in cases such as contracts or legal writing, where the emphasis is on defining the roles and responsibilities that fall on each individual. Here you want to avoid all ambiguity, since subtle changes of meaning or connotation might have major consequences. In these cases, another technique is probably preferable. Example of a gendered sentence, inclusive but unclear solution, and inclusive and clear solution Gendered sentence Inclusive but unclear solution Inclusive and clear solution Each researcher is expected to organize his hours of work, workdays and days of rest in order to suit his specific research project(s), subject to the approval of the employer. Researchers are expected to organize their hours of work, workdays and days of rest in order to suit their specific research project(s), subject to the approval of the employer. Each researcher is expected to organize their hours of work, workdays and days of rest in order to suit their specific research project(s), subject to the approval of the employer. In the gendered sentence above, each researcher is acting on their own to organize their work schedule. That emphasis is lost in the inclusive but unclear solution when the noun is pluralized. However, in the inclusive and clear solution, the emphasis remains on the individual. Additional information Inclusive writing – Guidelines and resources Inclusive writing: Glossary Gender-inclusive writing: Use the singular “they”
Source: Writing Tips Plus (English language problems and rules)

Inclusive writing: Background and principles

An article that defines inclusive writing and lists five guiding principles.
 On this page Background Definition of inclusive writing Principles of inclusive writing Principle 1: Use what works best Principle 2: Respect people’s wishes Principle 3: Make choices that are respectful of diversity Principle 4: Write clearly and effectively Principle 5: Be consistent Additional information Background There is broad consensus today on the importance of writing more inclusively to promote equity and the equal participation of all members of society. In fact, when people feel respected, understood and represented in communications, they are more inclined to contribute to the community. How can you make your writing inclusive? Whether you’re drafting an email, a report, an advertisement or any other type of document, you can produce an inclusive text, using the key principles listed below, in combination with various inclusive writing techniques (see the section on gender-inclusive writing techniques in the Guidelines for Inclusive Writing). Definition of inclusive writing Inclusive writing is writing that uses a set of principles and techniques designed to accomplish two goals: to promote inclusion and respect for diversity to eliminate all forms of discrimination based on sex, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability or any other identity factor The terms “gender-inclusive writing” and “gender-neutral writing” are narrower in scope and are used to designate writing that is focused more specifically on equal representation of all genders. Principles of inclusive writing The approach to inclusive writing proposed in our guidelines is based on five key principles that reflect ongoing developments in Canadian society and current English usage. These general principles should serve as a guide to help you in applying the gender-inclusive writing techniques listed on the page Inclusive writing – Guidelines and resources. Principle 1: Use what works best Apply the technique or techniques that fit your specific situation, taking into account the type of text you’re writing and the audience you’re writing for. The English language has several techniques you can use to make your writing gender-inclusive. For example, you can use the singular “they” or the passive voice, or address your reader directly. No one technique will meet all your communication needs. You need to consider both the nature of the text and the audience when choosing techniques and combining them to craft a clear piece of writing. For instance, addressing the reader directly can draw the reader in and give your text a more personal touch. On the other hand, using the passive voice can make your text sound more formal. And if you’re writing to non-binary individuals, other techniques might be useful (see our article Gender-inclusive writing: Guidelines for writing to or about non-binary individuals). Principle 2: Respect people’s wishes When you’re writing to or about someone, use the person’s specified courtesy title and pronouns. Individuals’ wishes vary when it comes to courtesy titles and pronouns (for example, Mr., Ms., Mx., he, she, singular “they”). These wishes must be respected when we’re writing to someone (as in an email) or writing about them (as in a biography). For more information, see our article Gender-inclusive writing: Guidelines for writing to or about non-binary individuals. Principle 3: Make choices that are respectful of diversity Choose words, expressions and examples that are in keeping with diversity so as to avoid stereotypes. Inclusive writing avoids terminology that conveys bias or stereotypes, puts different genders on an equal footing and accurately reflects the diversity of the population. It is therefore important to choose your words with care. See the section on inclusive and respectful language on the page Inclusive writing – Guidelines and resources for more information and for examples of inclusive solutions. Principle 4: Write clearly and effectively Use the principles of inclusive writing in conjunction with the principles of clear and effective communication. The primary objective of communication is to convey a message that is understood by its recipient. A dense or needlessly complex piece of writing can quickly become difficult to understand. You should therefore choose inclusive writing techniques wisely and ensure that clarity is maintained. When properly applied, inclusive writing techniques enable you to produce accurate, concise and impactful texts. Principle 5: Be consistent Apply inclusive writing techniques throughout each text and throughout all communications within your organization. First of all, be consistently inclusive. You shouldn’t be content with using inclusive writing techniques merely in a few passages or solely in the title of your document. A concern for inclusivity should resonate throughout your writing. Be consistent as well in applying inclusive writing techniques. Organizations can help by establishing inclusive writing guidelines to ensure their texts reflect consistent choices. For instance, your organization’s guidelines could indicate in which contexts you should address the reader directly or in which contexts you should use the passive voice. Additional information Inclusive writing – Guidelines and resources Gender-inclusive writing: Guidelines for writing to or about non-binary individuals Inclusive writing: Glossary
Source: Writing Tips Plus (English language problems and rules)

Inclusive writing: Glossary

A list of specialized terms related to inclusive writing and their definitions.
 The Guidelines for Inclusive Writing include some terms that are specialized or that are used in a very specific sense. The definitions below can help you to understand some of the principles and techniques presented in the guide. gender “The behavioural, cultural and psychological traits associated with an array of gender identities […] in a given society.” These gender identities include, but are not limited to, man and woman. Source: Guide on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Terminology gender binary The division of gender into the two distinct and unvarying categories of man and woman. gendered “That is organized or separated by gender, or that is associated with a gender,” most often a binary gender (that is, man or woman). Source: Gender and Sexual Diversity Glossary gender identity “A person's internal and deeply felt sense of being a man, a woman, both, neither, or somewhere along the gender spectrum.” Source: Guide on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Terminology gender-inclusive Inclusive of all genders, binary and non-binary. Synonym: gender-neutral generic “they” The pronoun “they” or any of its forms used with a non-specific singular antecedent such as “anyone,” “everyone,” “an employee,” etc. (for example, “Everyone submitted their report”). iel A French gender-neutral neopronoun used by some non-binary individuals. inclusive writing Writing that uses a set of principles and techniques designed to promote inclusion and respect for diversity and to eliminate all forms of discrimination based on sex, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability or any other identity factor. See the article Inclusive writing: Background and principles. Mx. A gender-neutral courtesy title used by some non-binary individuals and by those who simply prefer not to specify their gender. It is pronounced “miks.” neopronoun A new pronoun created to designate a person who does not identify with masculine or feminine pronouns. non-binary “Referring to a person whose gender identity does not align with a binary understanding of gender such as man or woman.” Source: Gender and Sexual Diversity Glossary singular “they” The pronoun “they” or any of its forms used to refer to a person whose gender is unknown. Also, a pronoun for some individuals with a non-binary gender identity. specific “they” The pronoun “they” or any of its forms used with a specific singular antecedent (for example, “Riley submitted their report”). stereotype A preconceived idea that is widely held, but often inaccurate and offensive, about a race, a nationality, a sexual orientation, a gender identity, an ethnic group or any other identifiable group. Additional information Inclusive writing – Guidelines and resources Gender and sexual diversity glossary Gender-inclusive writing: Guidelines for writing to or about non-binary individuals Gender-inclusive writing: Use the singular “they” Guide on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Terminology
Source: Writing Tips Plus (English language problems and rules)

Usher of the Black Rod

A writing tip on the title Usher of the Black Rod.
 Note the capital letters in the gender-neutral title Usher of the Black Rod. The holder of this office has ceremonial and security responsibilities in the Senate. The position of Usher of the Black Rod dates back about 500 years in British parliamentary tradition. The office was called the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod until 1997, when the first woman was appointed to the position. Twelve men in succession held the position of Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod in the Senate of Canada before the first woman was appointed.
Source: Writing Tips Plus (English language problems and rules)

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