View source for You

{{short description|Personal pronoun to denote the interlocutor}}
{{italic title}}
{{About|the pronoun}}
{{hatnote|"You" and "Your" are not to be confused with [[U]], [[Ewe (disambiguation)|Ewe]], [[Yew]], or [[Ure (disambiguation)|Ure]].}}
{{pp-semi-indef}}
{{Wiktionary|you|yours|your|yourself|yourselves}}

In [[Modern English]], the word "'''''you'''''" is the [[Grammatical person|second-person]] [[English pronouns|pronoun]]. It is [[Grammatical number|grammatically plural]], and was historically used only for the [[dative case]], but in most{{fact|date=November 2021}} modern dialects is used for all cases and numbers.

== History ==
{{Further|Middle English personal pronouns|Old English pronouns|Proto-Germanic pronouns|Proto-Indo-European pronouns}}''You'' comes from the [[Proto-Germanic language|Proto-Germanic]] [[demonstrative]] base {{lang|gem-x-proto|juz-}}, {{lang|gem-x-proto|iwwiz}} from [[Proto-Indo-European language|Proto-Indo-European]] {{lang|ine-x-proto|yu-}} (second-person plural pronoun).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Origin and meaning of it |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/it |access-date=2021-03-20 |website=Online Etymology Dictionary |language=en}}</ref> [[Old English]] had singular, dual, and plural second-person pronouns. The dual form was lost by the twelfth century,<ref name="Cambridge 1992">{{Cite book|title=The Cambridge history of the English Language: Volume II 1066–1476|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1992|editor-last=Blake|editor-first=Norman|location=Cambridge}}</ref>{{Rp|117}} and the singular form was lost by the early 1600s.<ref name="etymonline.com">{{Cite web |title=thee |url=https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=thee |access-date=2021-03-29 |website=Online Etymology Dictionary}}</ref> The development is shown in the following table.<ref name="Cambridge 1992" />{{Rp|117, 120, 121}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+Second-person pronouns in Old English, [[Middle English]], & Modern English
!
! colspan="3" |Singular
! colspan="3" |Dual
! colspan="3" |Plural
|-
!
!OE
!ME
!Mod
!OE
!ME
!Mod
!OE
!ME
!Mod
|-
!Nominative
|{{Lang|ang|þu}}
|{{Lang|enm|þu}}
| rowspan="4" {{n/a}}
|{{Lang|ang|ġit}}
| colspan="2" rowspan="4" {{n/a}}
|{{Lang|ang|ġe}}
|{{Lang|enm|ȝē}}
| rowspan="3" |''you''
|-
!Accusative
| rowspan="2" |{{Lang|ang|þe}}
| rowspan="2" |{{Lang|enm|þē}}
| rowspan="2" |{{Lang|ang|inc}}
| rowspan="2" |{{Lang|ang|ēow}}
| rowspan="2" |{{Lang|enm|ȝou}}
|-
![[Dative case|Dative]]
|-
!Genitive
|{{Lang|ang|þīn}}
|{{Lang|enm|þī(n)}}
|{{Lang|ang|incer}}
|{{Lang|ang|ēower}}
|{{Lang|enm|ȝour(es)}}
|''your''(''s'')
|}
[[Early Modern English]] distinguished between the plural ''{{Lang|en-emodeng|[[Ye (pronoun)|ye]]|italic=yes}}'' and the singular ''{{Lang|en-emodeng|[[thou]]|italic=yes}}''. As in many other European languages, English at the time had a [[T–V distinction]], which made the plural forms more respectful and deferential; they were used to address strangers and social superiors.<ref name="etymonline.com"/> This distinction ultimately led to familiar ''thou'' becoming obsolete in modern English, although it [[Thou#Persistence of second-person singular|persists in some English dialects]].

''Yourself'' had developed by the early 14th century, with the plural ''yourselves'' attested from 1520.<ref>{{Cite web |title=yourselves |url=https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=yourselves |access-date=2021-03-29 |website=Online Etymology Dictionary}}</ref>

== Morphology ==
In [[Standard English|Standard]] Modern English, ''you'' has five shapes representing six distinct word [[Morphology (linguistics)|forms]]:<ref name="Huddleston & Pullum">{{Cite book|last1=Huddleston|first1=Rodney|title=The Cambridge grammar of the English language|last2=Pullum|first2=Geoffrey K.|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2002}}</ref>
* ''you'': the [[Nominative case|nominative]] (subjective) and [[Accusative case|accusative]] (objective or [[oblique case]]<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Cambridge history of the English Language: Volume III 1476–1776|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1999|editor-last=Lass|editor-first=Roger|location=Cambridge}}</ref>{{Rp|146}}) forms
* ''your:'' the dependent [[Genitive case|genitive]] (possessive) form
* ''yours'': the independent genitive (possessive) form
* ''yourselves'': the plural [[Reflexive pronoun|reflexive]] and [[Intensive pronoun|intensive]] (emphatic) form
* ''yourself'': the singular reflexive and intensive (emphatic) form

===Plural forms from other varieties<span class="anchor" id="Plural_forms"></span>===
Although there is some dialectal retention of the original plural ''ye'' and the original singular ''thou'', most English-speaking groups have lost the original forms. Because of the loss of the original singular-plural distinction, many English dialects belonging to this group have innovated new plural forms of the second person pronoun. Examples of such pronouns sometimes seen and heard include:
* ''[[y'all]]'', or ''you all''&nbsp;– [[Southern American English|southern United States]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Rios |first=Delia M |date=2004-06-01 |title='You-guys': It riles Miss Manners and other purists, but for most it adds color to language landscape |publisher=[[The Seattle Times]] |url=https://archive.seattletimes.com/archive/?date=20040601&slug=youguys01 |access-date=2007-03-30}}</ref> [[African-American Vernacular English]], the [[Abaco Islands]],<ref name="Schreier 2013">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-TGSgT2SyH0C |title=The Lesser-Known Varieties of English: An Introduction |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2013 |isbn=9781139487412 |editor-last=Schreier |editor-first=Daniel |location=Cambridge |editor-last2=Trudgill |editor-first2=Peter |editor-last3=Schneider |editor-first3=Edgar W. |editor-last4=Williams |editor-first4=Jeffrey P.}}</ref> [[Saint Helena|St. Helena]]<ref name="Schreier 2013"/> and [[Tristan da Cunha]].<ref name="Schreier 2013" /> ''Y'all'' however, is also occasionally used for the second-person singular in the North American varieties.
* {{anchor|you_guys}}''{{Wikt-lang|en|you guys|italic=no}}'' – United States,<ref>{{cite journal|last=Jochnowitz|first=George|year=1984|title=Another View of You Guys|journal=American Speech|volume=58|issue=1|pages=68–70|doi=10.2307/454759|jstor=454759}}</ref> particularly in the Midwest, Northeast, South Florida and West Coast; [[Canadian English|Canada]], [[Australian English|Australia]]. Gendered usage varies; for mixed groups, "you guys" is nearly always used. For groups consisting of only women, forms like "you girls" or "you gals" might appear instead, though "you guys" is sometimes used for a group of only women as well.
* ''{{Wikt-lang|en|you lot|italic=no}}''&nbsp;– [[British English|United Kingdom]],<ref>Finegan, Edward (2011). ''[[iarchive:languageitsstru000fine|Language: Its Structure and Use]]''. Wadsworth Publishing Co Inc p. 489. {{ISBN|978-0495900412}}</ref> [[Palmerston Island]],<ref name="Williams 2015">{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z1a3BwAAQBAJ |title=Further Studies in the Lesser-Known Varieties of English |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-107-02120-4 |editor-last=Williams |editor-first=Jeffrey P. |location=Cambridge |editor-last2=Schneider |editor-first2=Edgar W. |editor-last3=Trudgill |editor-first3=Peter |editor-last4=Schreier |editor-first4=Daniel}}</ref> Australia
* ''you mob'' – Australia<ref>{{Cite web |title=Expressions |url=https://theaussieenglishpodcast.com/tag/expression/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180823041922/https://theaussieenglishpodcast.com/tag/expression/ |archive-date=Aug 23, 2018 |website=The Aussie English Podcast}}</ref>
* ''{{Wikt-lang|en|you-all|italic=no}}, all-you'' – [[Caribbean English]],<ref name="Allsopp">{{Cite book|last=Allsopp|first=Richard|url=https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofcari0000unse|title=Dictionary of Caribbean English Usage|date=2003|publisher=The University of the West Indies Press|isbn=978-976-640-145-0|location=Kingston|orig-year=1996|url-access=registration}}</ref> [[Saban English|Saba]]<ref name="Williams 2015" />
* ''a(ll)-yo-dis''&nbsp;– [[Guyana]]<ref name="Allsopp" />
* ''allyuh'' – [[Trinidadian and Tobagonian English|Trinidad and Tobago]]<ref name="cguillaumme">{{Cite web |title=Dictionary of Trinidad and Tobago |url=https://cguillaumme.caribsurf.net/dictionary.html |website=Chateau Guillaumme Bed and Breakfast}}</ref>
* ''among(st)-you''&nbsp;– [[Carriacou]], [[Grenada]], Guyana,<ref name="Allsopp" /> [[Útila|Utila]]<ref name="Williams 2015" />
* ''{{Wikt-lang|en|wunna|italic=no}}'' – [[Barbados]]<ref name="Allsopp" />
* ''yinna'' – [[The Bahamas|Bahamas]]<ref name="Allsopp" />
* ''{{Wikt-lang|en|unu|italic=no}}/oona'' –  [[Jamaican English|Jamaica]], [[Belize]], [[Cayman Islands English|Cayman Islands]], Barbados,<ref name="Allsopp" /> [[San Salvador Island]]<ref name="Schreier 2013" />
* ''{{Wikt-lang|en|youse|yous(e)|italic=no}}''&nbsp;– [[Hiberno-English|Ireland]],<ref>Dolan, T. P. (2006). ''[[iarchive:dictionaryofhibe0000dola|A Dictionary of Hiberno-English]]''. Gill & Macmillan. p. 26. {{ISBN|978-0717140398}}</ref> [[Geordie|Tyneside]],<ref>Wales, Katie (1996). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=d68sHzfpWVMC&pg=PA76 Personal Pronouns in Present-Day English]''. Cambridge University Press. p. 76. {{ISBN|978-0521471022}}</ref> [[Scouse|Merseyside]],<ref>Kortmann, Bernd; Upton, Clive (2008). ''[[iarchive:britishisles0000unse_o6i2|Varieties of English: The British Isles]]''. Mouton de Gruyter. p. 378. {{ISBN|978-3110196351}}</ref> Central Scotland,<ref>Taavitsainen, Irma; Jucker, Andreas H. (2003). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=92SqCciTOIQC&pg=PT358 Diachronic Perspectives on Address Term Systems]''. John Benjamins Publishing Company. p. 351. {{ISBN|978-9027253484}}</ref> Australia,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Butler |first=Susan |date=Aug 30, 2013 |title=Pluralising 'you' to 'youse' |url=https://www.macquariedictionary.com.au/news/view/editor/article/148/ |access-date=2016-02-02 |website=www.macquariedictionary.com.au}}</ref> [[Falkland Islands English|Falkland Islands]],<ref name="Schreier 2013" /> [[New Zealand English|New Zealand]],<ref name="Williams 2015" /> [[Philadelphia English|Philadelphia]],<ref>[http://www.philly.com/inquirer/currents/15153756.html My sweet | Philadelphia Inquirer | 02/03/2008<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080422175131/http://www.philly.com/inquirer/currents/15153756.html|date=April 22, 2008}}</ref> parts of the [[Midwestern United States|Midwestern US]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=McClelland |first=Edward |date=Feb 6, 2017 |title=Here's hoping all youse enjoy this |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/opinion/commentary/ct-language-yinz-youse-perspec-ya-ll-you-guys-perspec-0207-jm-20170206-story.html |access-date=2020-03-10 |website=Chicago Tribune}}</ref> [[Cape Breton Island|Cape Breton]] and rural [[Canada]]{{Citation needed|date=March 2020}}
* ''yous(e) guys''&nbsp;– in the United States, particularly in [[New York City English|New York City]] region, [[Philadelphia]], [[Northeastern Pennsylvania]], and the [[Upper Peninsula of Michigan]];{{citation needed|date=August 2013}}
* ''[[Yinz|you-uns, or yinz]]''&nbsp;– [[Western Pennsylvania English|Western Pennsylvania]], the [[Ozarks]], the [[Appalachian English|Appalachians]]<ref name="Rehder 2004">{{cite book|last=Rehder|first=John B.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MU-43z3ZiToC&q=%22you+ones%22+appalachia&pg=PA300|title=Appalachian folkways|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|year=2004|isbn=978-0-8018-7879-4|location=Baltimore|oclc=52886851}}</ref>
* ''[[ye (pronoun)|ye]], {{Wikt-lang|en|yee|italic=no}},'' ''{{Wikt-lang|en|yees|italic=no}},'' ''{{Wikt-lang|en|yiz|italic=no}}'' – Ireland,<ref>Howe, Stephen (1996). ''The Personal Pronouns in the Germanic Languages: A Study of Personal Morphology and Change in the Germanic Languages from the First Records to the Present Day''. p. 174. Walter de Gruyter & Co. {{ISBN|978-3110146363}}</ref> Tyneside,<ref>Graddol, David et al. (1996). ''[[iarchive:englishhistorydi0000unse|English History, Diversity and Change]]''. Routledge. p. 244. {{ISBN|978-0415131186}}</ref> Newfoundland and Labrador<ref name="Williams 2015" />

== Semantics ==
''You'' prototypically refers to the [[Grammatical person|addressee]] along with zero or more other [[person]]s, excluding the speaker. ''You'' is also used to refer to personified things (e.g., ''why won't you start?'' addressed to a car).<ref>{{Cite web |title=you, pron., adj., and n. |url=https://www.oed.com/viewdictionaryentry/Entry/232147 |access-date=2021-03-29 |website=Oxford English Dictionary |language=en}}</ref> ''You'' is always [[Definiteness|definite]] even when it is not [[Specificity (linguistics)|specific]].

Semantically, ''you'' is both singular and plural, though syntactically it is almost always plural: i.e. always takes a [[verb]] form that originally marked the word as plural, (i.e. ''you are'', in common with ''we are'' and ''they are'').

===First person usage===
The practice of referring to oneself as ''you'', occasionally known as ''tuism'',<ref>{{cite book|last=Blount|first=Roy, Jr.|title=Alphabet Juice: The Energies, Gists, and Spirits of Letters, Words, and Combinations Thereof; Their Roots, Bones, Innards, Piths, Pips, and Secret Parts, Tinctures, Tonics, and Essences; With Examples of Their Usage Foul and Savory|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xZWKctOqg8YC|year=2008|location=New York|publisher=Sarah Crichton Books|isbn=978-0-374-10369-9}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Marcus Nordlund|title=Shakespearean Inside: A Study of the Complete Soliloquies and Solo Asides|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fjZYDwAAQBAJ|year=2017|publisher=Edinburgh University Press Ltd|location=The Tun|isbn=978-1-4744-1899-7}}</ref> is common when [[talking to oneself]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gammage |first1=Kimberley L |last2=Hardy |first2=James |last3=Hall |first3=Craig R |title=A description of self-talk in exercise |journal=Psychology of Sport and Exercise |date=October 2001 |volume=2 |issue=4 |pages=233–247 |doi=10.1016/S1469-0292(01)00011-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Dolcos |first1=Sanda |last2=Albarracin |first2=Dolores |title=The inner speech of behavioral regulation: Intentions and task performance strengthen when you talk to yourself as a You: Self-talk person and self-regulation |journal=European Journal of Social Psychology |date=October 2014 |volume=44 |issue=6 |pages=636–642 |doi=10.1002/ejsp.2048}}</ref> It is less common in conversations with others, as it could easily result in confusion. Since English lacks a distinct first person singular [[imperative mood]], ''you'' and ''[[let's]]'' function as substitutes.

===Third person usage===
{{Details|Generic you||}}
''You'' is used to refer to an indeterminate person, as a more common alternative to the very formal [[indefinite pronoun]] ''[[One (pronoun)|one]]''.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Garner |first1=Bryan A. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mSjnCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA651 |title=Garner's Modern English Usage |date=2016 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-049148-2 |page=651 |author-link1=Bryan A. Garner}}</ref> Though this may be semantically third person, for agreement purposes, ''you'' is always second person.
:Example: "''One'' should drink water frequently" or "''You'' should drink water frequently".

== Syntax ==

=== Agreement ===
''You'' almost always triggers plural verb [[Agreement (linguistics)|agreement]], even when it is semantically singular.

=== Functions ===
''You'' can appear as a [[Subject (grammar)|subject]], [[Object (grammar)|object]], [[determiner]] or [[Complement (linguistics)|predicative complement]].<ref name="Huddleston & Pullum"/> The reflexive form also appears as an [[Adjunct (grammar)|adjunct]]. ''You'' occasionally appears as a [[Grammatical modifier|modifier]] in a noun phrase.
* Subject: ''<u>You'</u>re there''; ''<u>your</u> being there''; ''you paid for <u>yourself</u> to be there.''
* Object: ''I saw you''; ''I introduced her to you; You saw <u>yourself</u>.''
* Predicative complement: ''The only person there was <u>you;</u> this is <u>yours</u>.''
* Determiner: ''I met <u>your</u> friend.''
* Adjunct: ''You did it <u>yourself</u>.''
* Modifier: ''This sounds like a <u>you</u> problem.''

=== Dependents ===
Pronouns rarely take [[Phrase structure grammar#Dependency relation|dependents]], but it is possible for ''you'' to have many of the same kind of dependents as other [[noun phrase]]s.
* [[Relative clause]] modifier: ''you <u>who believe</u>''
* Determiner: ''<u>the</u> real you''; ''*<u>the</u> you''
* [[Adjective phrase]] modifier: ''the <u>real</u> you''; ''*real you''
* [[Adverbial phrase|Adverb phrase]] external modifier: ''<u>Not even</u> you''

==See also==
* [[Generic you]]
* [[English personal pronouns]]
* [[Thou]]
* [[Y'all]]
* [[Yinz]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Modern English personal pronouns|DIRECTOR=|INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY=}}

[[Category:Modern English personal pronouns]]
[[Category:Second-person plural pronouns in English]]
[[Category:English pronouns]]
[[Category:English words]]