It's always ok to use it when referring to anyone in the third person
. It just isn't used like this very often. The example in the question certainly is not “wrong” in any way. Sometimes native speakers do use “their” even when “her” or “his” would also work, and it's not wrong.
Is someone his or her or their?
| Person Subjective Case Possessive Case Possessive Adjective | Third Person Singular he/she/it his/her/its | First Person Plural we our | Second Person Plural you your | Third Person Plural they their |
|---|
Can we use their with someone?
Someone, Anyone, No one, Everyone;
Are always singular
and you can never use “its” as a possessive form to refer to them because they are all considered to be people, not things. Luis is basically correct. People will use “their” as in “Everyone brought their cameras.” But technically it is not correct.
When can I use their?
Their is the
possessive
pronoun, as in “their car is red”; there is used as an adjective, “he is always there for me,” a noun, “get away from there,” and, chiefly, an adverb, “stop right there”; they're is a contraction of “they are,” as in “they're getting married.”
When use its or their?
BizWritingTip response: As ABC Enterprises is considered a singular noun, you would have to use the personal pronoun “its.” ABC Enterprises offered all its employees a bonus. (Its is replacing the company's name.) You would
only use “their” when the noun it is replacing is plural
.
Can he be used for both genders?
While the use, in formal English, of he, him or
his as a gender-neutral pronoun
has traditionally been considered grammatically correct, such use may also be considered to be a violation of gender agreement.
What words can you not use in 3rd person?
Avoid using first person pronouns—“
I,” “me,” “my,” “mine
,” “myself,” “we,” “us,” “our,” “ours.” When you've finished writing and are self-editing your first draft, make sure to check for POV consistency. In third-person limited , remember that the narrator only knows what the character knows.
What are the 3 different yours?
- your – possessive, the thing belonging to you. See how it ends in “our”? Use that as a reminder. When it belongs to us, it's our thing. When it belongs to you, it's your thing.
- you're – a contraction of the words “you are”. The apostrophe is your signal that the word can be split into two words.
How do you teach the difference between there and their?
There means the opposite of here; “at that place.” Their means “
belongs
to them.” They're is a contraction of “they are” or “they were.”
Is team its or their?
Team = plural
; shower, change, head = plural verbs; their = plural pronoun. (The teammates are dressing in their individual outfits and leaving in different directions for their individual homes.)
Is company its or their?
Company and business names sometimes sound plural (Saks, Lord and Taylor, AT&T, and so forth). However, a company is just one company and is, therefore, a singular noun. When you refer to the company, use the singular pronoun
it or its
, not the plural pronouns they or their.
Who is VS that is?
Who is
always used to refer to people
. That is always used when you are talking about an object. That can also be used when you are talking about a class or type of person, such as a team.
Can they replace he or she?
Increasingly, companies are removing “he” and “she” from their employee handbooks and
replacing them with gender-neutral pronouns
, such as “they,” Merriam-Webster's word of 2019. The companies are doing this to make nonbinary individuals who do not identify as male or female feel included.
How many genders are there?
What are the four genders? The four genders are masculine, feminine, neuter and common. There are four different types of genders that apply to living and nonliving objects.
What is Zhe?
Zhe,
a proposed gender-neutral pronoun
(with: zhim, zhers, zhimself) Maclura tricuspidata (or zhè), a tree native to East Asia. Že, a letter of the Perso-Arabic alphabet. Zhejiang, a province of China. Qiantang River, the river after which Zhejiang Province was named.
What can I use instead of you?
Replace instances of “you” in your essay either by using
“individual” or “one”
to refer to a single hypothetical person and using “people” to refer to a large group to whom something you're saying applies. Replace instances of “your” in your essay by using the possessive forms of “individual,” “one,” and “people.”
