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Editorial Standards

Gender

Copy intended to apply to both sexes should be free of gender references. Use of the second person or the plural form will help avoid awkwardness.

Consider, for example, the following unacceptable sentences:

Each student should pay his fees on Monday.

Each student should pay his/her/their fees on Monday.

Either of the following solutions would suffice:

All students should pay their fees on Monday.

You should pay your fees on Monday.

 

If there is no alternative to singular pronouns in copy intended for both sexes, use "he or she," "him and her," “they,” etc.
They/them/their can be used as an example of a singular and/or gender-neutral pronoun.