From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Y’all (pronounced yawl[2]) is a contraction of you and all, sometimes combined as you-all. Y’all is the main second-person plural pronoun in Southern American English, with which it is most frequently associated,[3] though it also appears in some other English varieties, including African-American English and South African Indian English. It is usually used as a plural second-person pronoun, but whether it is exclusively plural is a perennial subject of discussion.
History[edit]
Y’all is a contraction of you all. The spelling you-all in second-person plural pronoun usage was first recorded in 1824.[4][5] The earliest two attestations with the actual spelling y’all are from 1856,[6] and in the Southern Literary Messenger (published in Richmond, Virginia) in 1858.[7] Although it appeared in print sporadically in the second half of the nineteenth century in the Southern United States, its usage did not accelerate as a whole Southern regional phenomenon until the twentieth century.[8]
It is not certain whether its use began specifically with black or white residents of the South, both of whom use the term today;[9] one possibility is that the term was brought by Scots-Irish immigrants to the South, evolving from the earlier Ulster Scots term ye aw.[10][11][12] An alternative theory is that y’all is a calque of Gullah and Caribbean creole via earlier dialects of African-American English.[13] However, most linguists agree that y’all is likely an original form, deriving from original processes of grammar and morphological change, rather than being directly transferred from any other English dialects.[13]
Y’all manifested at different times in various dialects of English, including Southern American English and South African Indian English, suggesting parallel, independent development,[14] while emergence in Southern and African-American Vernacular English closely correlates in time and place.
The spelling y’all is the most prevalent in print, ten times that of ya’ll;[15] much less common spelling variants include yall, yawl, and yo-all.[9]
Linguistic characteristics[edit]
Functionally, the emergence of y’all can be traced to the merging of singular («thou») and plural («ye») second-person pronouns in Early Modern English.[13] Y’all thus fills in the gap created by the absence of a separate second-person plural pronoun in standard modern English. Y’all is unique in that the stressed form that it contracts (you-all) is converted to an unstressed form.[15]
The usage of y’all can satisfy several grammatical functions, including an associative plural, a collective pronoun, an institutional pronoun, and an indefinite pronoun.[10][16]
Y’all can in some instances serve as a «tone-setting device to express familiarity and solidarity.»[17] When used in the singular, y’all can be used to convey a feeling of warmth towards the addressee.[18] In this way, singular usage of y’all differs from French, Russian or German, where plural forms can be used for formal singular instances.[18]
Singular usage[edit]
There is historic disagreement whether y’all is primarily or exclusively plural,[13] with debate steming from the late nineteenth century to the present.[16] While some Southerners hold y’all is only properly used as a plural pronoun, counter evidence suggests usage include singular references,[9][15][18][19] particularly amongst non-Southerners.[20]
H. L. Mencken, in recognizing the typical plural reference of y’all, acknowledged observation of the singular reference, writing-
is a cardinal article of faith in the South. … Nevertheless, it has been questioned very often, and with a considerable showing of evidence. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, to be sure, you-all indicates a plural, implicit if not explicit, and thus means, when addressed to a single person, ‘you and your folks’ or the like, but the hundredth time it is impossible to discover any such extension of meaning.
— H. L. Mencken, The American Language Supplement 2: An Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States, 1948, p.337[21]
Possessive forms[edit]
The existence of the genitive (or possessive) form y’all’s indicates that y’all functions as a pronoun as opposed to a phrasal element.[17] The possessive form of y’all has not been standardized; numerous forms can be found, including y’alls, y’all’s, y’alls’s, you all’s, your all’s, and all of y’all’s.[16]
All y’all[edit]
All y’all, all of y’all, and alls y’all are used by some speakers to indicate a larger group than is necessarily implied by simply y’all.[22] All y’all can also be used for emphasis; the existence of this etymologically pleonastic form is further evidence that speakers now perceive y’all as a grammatically indivisible unit.[16]
Regional usage[edit]
Frequency of «y’all» to address multiple people, according to a survey of American dialect variation[23]
United States[edit]
Y’all has been called «perhaps the most distinctive of all grammatical characteristics» of Southern American English, as well as its most prominent characteristic.[13] Linguist Walt Wolfram and English professor Jeffrey Reaser wrote, «No word in the American English vocabulary probably carries as much regional capital.»[24] People who move to the South from other regions often adopt the usage, even when other regional usages are not adopted.[25] Outside the southern United States, y’all is most closely associated with African-American Vernacular English.[26] African Americans took Southern usages with them during the twentieth-century exodus from the South to cities in the northeastern United States and other places within the nation. In urban African-American communities outside of the South, the usage of y’all is prominent.[27]
The use of y’all as the dominant second person-plural pronoun is not necessarily universal in the Southern United States. In some dialects of the Ozarks and Great Smoky Mountains, for example, it is common to hear you’uns (a contraction of «you ones») used instead.[16] Other forms have also been used increasingly in the South, including you guys.[16]
A survey conducted in 1996 reported 49% of non-Southerners and 84% of Southerners used y’all or you-all in conversation, with a subsequent 1994 survey returning a 5% increase by both groups.[16]
South Africa[edit]
In South Africa, y’all appears across all varieties of South African Indian English.[28] Its lexical similarity to the y’all of the United States may be coincidental.[28]
Rest of the world[edit]
Y’all appears in other dialects of English, including Maori English in New Zealand, and dialects of St. Helena, Tristan da Cunha,[29] and Newfoundland and Labrador.[30]
See also[edit]
Look up y’all in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Look up all y’all in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
- English personal pronouns
- Ye (pronoun)
- Yinz
References[edit]
- ^ «Water towers loom large». The Cincinnati Enquirer. April 7, 2001. Archived from the original on April 24, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2010.
- ^ you-all Archived March 27, 2019, at the Wayback Machine and y’all Archived July 10, 2019, at the Wayback Machine. Dictionary.com. Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary. 2019.
- ^ Bernstein, Cynthia: «Grammatical Features of Southern speech: Yall, Might could, and fixin to». English in the Southern United States, 2003, pp. 106 Cambridge University Press
- ^ Harper, Douglas. «y’all». Online Etymology Dictionary.
- ^ Bailey, Guy (1997). «When did southern American English begin?» Englishes around the world, 1, 255-275.
- ^ Parker, David B. (2015). «Y’all: It’s Older Than We Knew Archived September 17, 2020, at the Wayback Machine». History News Network.
- ^ Parker, David B. «Y’All: Two Early Examples.» American Speech 81.1 (2006): 110-112. .
- ^ Devlin, Thomas Moore (2019). «The Rise Of Y’all And The Quest For A Second-Person Plural Pronoun Archived June 6, 2020, at the Wayback Machine». Babbel. Lesson Nine GmbH.
- ^ a b c Crystal, David. The Story of English in 100 Words Archived September 28, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. 2011. p. 190.
- ^ a b Montgomery, Michael. «British and Irish antecedents» Archived September 28, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, from The Cambridge History of the English Language, Vol. 6, John Algeo, ed. 1992. p.149.
- ^ Bernstein, Cynthia: «Grammatical Features of Southern Speech: Yall, Might could, and fixin to». English in the Southern United States, 2003, pp. 108-109 Cambridge University Press
- ^ Lipski, John. 1993. «Y’all in American English,» English World-Wide 14:23-56.
- ^ a b c d e Schneider, Edgar W. «The English dialect heritage of the southern United States» Archived September 8, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, from Legacies of Colonial English, Raymond Hickey, ed. 2005. p.284.
- ^ Hickey, Raymond. A Dictionary of Varieties of English Archived October 13, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. 2013. p.231.
- ^ a b c Garner, Bryan. Garner’s Modern American Usage Archived September 3, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. 2009. p.873.
- ^ a b c d e f g Bernstein, Cynthia. «Grammatical features of southern speech» Archived April 8, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, from English in the Southern United States, Stephen J. Nagle, et al. eds. 2003. pp.107-109.
- ^ a b Hickey, Raymond. «Rectifying a standard deficiency» Archived September 16, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, from Diachronic Perspectives on Address Term Systems. Irma Taavitsainen, Andreas Juncker, eds. 2003. p.352.
- ^ a b c Lerner, Laurence. You Can’t Say That! English Usage Today Archived September 19, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. 2010. p. 218.
- ^ Hyman, Eric (2006). «The All of You-All«. American Speech. 81 (3): 325–331. doi:10.1215/00031283-2006-022.
- ^ Okrent, Anrika (September 14, 2014). «Can Y’all Be Used to Refer to a Single Person?». The Week. The Week Publications. Archived from the original on September 15, 2014. Retrieved September 15, 2014.
- ^ Mencken, H.L. (April 4, 2012). The American Language Supplement 2: An Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States. A. Knopf ebook. ISBN 9780307813442. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
- ^ Simpson, Teresa R. «How to Use «Y’all» Correctly». Archived from the original on November 18, 2008. Retrieved December 16, 2008.
- ^ «Dialect Survey Results». Archived from the original on December 22, 2011. Retrieved February 29, 2012.
- ^ Wolfram, Walt; Reaser, Jeffrey (2014). Talkin’ Tar Heel : How Our Voices Tell the Story of North Carolina. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press. p. 82. ISBN 978-1-4696-1437-3.
- ^ Montgomery, Michael. «Y’all» Archived September 26, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, from The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, Vol. 5: Language. Michael Montgomery et al. eds. 2007.
- ^ Baugh, John. Beyond Ebonics. 2000. p.106
- ^ Wright, Susan. «‘Ah’m going for to give youse a story today’: remarks on second person plural pronouns in Englishes» Archived April 29, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, from Taming the Vernacular, Jenny Cheshire and Dieter Stein, Eds. Routledge, 2014. p.177.
- ^ a b Mesthrie, Rajend. «South African Indian English», from Focus on South Africa Archived August 4, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. Vivian de Klerk, ed. 1996. pp.88-89.
- ^ Schreier, Daniel. «St Helenian English» Archived September 26, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, from The Lesser Known Varieties of English: An Introduction. Daniel Schreier, et al. eds. 2010. pp.235-237, 254.
- ^ Clarke, Sandra. «Newfoundland and Labrador English» Archived September 26, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, from The Lesser Known Varieties of English: An Introduction. Daniel Schreier, et al. eds. 2010. p.85.
How to Use ‘Y’all’ Correctly
Getty Images/Beverly LeFevre
Updated on December 05, 2018
It’s as Southern as eating cornbread, sipping sweet tea, and swatting mosquitoes on a porch in the summertime: using the word «y’all» is a quintessential southern trait. Whether you’re a lifelong Southerner, Yankee transplant, or just passing through, you’re most likely familiar with this basic Southern saying, but do you know how to use it correctly?
‘Y’all’ vs. ‘Ya’ll’: Is There Really a Difference?
The answer is yes. «Ya’ll» is just dead wrong. There is only one correct way to spell or use «y’all,» so whatever you do, don’t use the dreaded «ya’ll.» You may have heard people say that «y’all» isn’t proper English, but it’s really the misspelled «ya’ll» that can get you in trouble.
How the Saying Originated and Evolved
While «y’all» is actually a contraction for «you all» and is therefore technically correct, it is most commonly used in place of the plural form of «you.» The apostrophe after the «y» represents the lost «ooo» sound from the letters O and U. This explains why the sometimes-seen «ya’ll» spelling is wrong.
General speaking, «you» is the second-person singular pronoun, while «y’all» is modern English’s answer to a second-person plural pronoun. There are other ways to make «you» plural in other parts of the English-speaking world, such as just saying «you guys» (common in most of the Northern United States), «you lot» (Great Britain), or even «youse» (Australia), but even two out of three of these simply add a word to «you.»
In Spanish, the second-personal plural pronoun is ustedes or vosotros. In informal German, it’s ihr. While at one time, English speakers may have used «thou» for their second-person plural, these days we are much more likely to use one of the above examples, unless we are quoting Shakespeare.
Other Ways to Use Y’all
English speakers aren’t just limited to «y’all» to convey their meaning. «All y’all» (or «all of y’all») on the other hand, is an occasional variation some use to mean a group of people (as opposed to just two or three). For example:
- When speaking to two or three people: «Are y’all going to the movies?»
- When speaking to several people: «Are all y’all going to the movies?»
Things are further complicated when using the possessive form of the word. For example:
- «Is this y’all’s car?»
- «Is this all y’all’s favorite color?»
Note, though, that there is some debate on the spelling of the possessive form of «y’all.» Some will spell it «y’all’s» whereas others will spell it «y’alls.» Because there does not seem to be an official answer, it is a matter of personal preference.
Is It Really Acceptable?
Although «y’all» is not generally considered appropriate for formal writing, it’s not an improper or incorrect term, nor does it indicate a failure to grasp grammar or the English language. It is just another way that language has evolved over time to provide us with a much-needed second-person plural pronoun. So use it without fear when speaking with friends—especially in the South—but avoid it in college papers or professional communications.
How are y’all doing? If you find yourself using this sturdy Southernism in a piece of writing, be sure your apostrophe is in the proper place.
While we’re all used to hearing this word spoken, its punctuation doesn’t always translate when we go to put it on paper.
The confusion usually arises from a lack of understanding of the word’s basic construction, and once we break this down, it’s actually a piece of cake to remember the correct spelling.
What is the Difference Between Y’all and Ya’ll?
In this post, I will outline the differences between these two spellings and advise you on their future use.
After reading this post, you shouldn’t ever again second-guess yourself by thinking, “Is it spelled y’all or ya’ll?”
When to Use Y’all
How do you spell y’all? When people get hung up on the spelling of this word, it’s usually because they don’t think about what the word is actually meant to communicate. It’s a word that is spoken much more than written.
Y’all is a contraction of two different words: you-all. A contraction is a shortened word formed by omitting or combining some of the sounds of a longer word or phrase.
For example, don’t is a contraction formed from the two words do not.
Can’t is a contraction formed from the longer word cannot.
Similarly, y’all takes the two words you-all and combines them to make one single word: y’all.
- “You literally act like you have won something. Y’all are so gone from reality.” –The Dallas Morning News
- “Y’all can’t see this,” one woman said walking away and warning others. –The Washington Post
As with all contractions, an apostrophe is placed where the omission has occurred to indicate that a contraction has been formed.
When to Use Ya’ll
How do you spell ya’ll? As we stated in the above section, y’all is a contraction of the words you-all. The apostrophe stands in place for the second and third letters of “you.”
Ya’ll, therefore, is a misspelling and should be avoided in writing.
Not only is y’all the logical spelling, but also it is the overwhelmingly preferred spelling by writers, editors, publishers, etc. Garner’s Modern American Usage Dictionary estimates that y’all appears in print ten times more than does ya’ll.
This ngram, while not exact, confirms the clear and overwhelming preference for y’all.
If you do happen to use ya’ll, by accident or otherwise, expect to raise a few eyebrows.
Is Y’all Singular or Plural?
Y’all is sometimes used when speaking to a single person, leading to the mistaken belief that it also functions as a second person singular pronoun. This is not the case.
The American Heritage Dictionary has a great usage note on the use of y’all, and it identifies the many unique circumstances where y’all can be used when speaking to a single person yet remain a plural pronoun.
For example, one use is called the associative plural, meaning “you as an individual and also your family or associates.”
- What are y’all doing for dinner tonight?
In this sentence y’all is being used as a plural pronoun, but, in a conversation, you might say this to an individual person. No worries; y’all is still plural.
Can Y’all be Used in Formal Writing?
While it is common to hear in everyday speech (especially among American Southerners), y’all is not to be used in formal writing.
It is part of a regional U.S. dialect and is usually out of place in formal writing outside of direct quotations (both of our examples above were quotations).
Also, most formal writing does not accept contractions as a general rule of thumb. Y’all, of course, is a contraction.
Trick to Remember the Difference
Now that you know the construction behind y’all vs. ya’ll, I can show you an easy trick that can mentally assist you the next time you are stuck.
If you are still unsure when to use ya’ll or y’all, just remember that the apostrophe in the word indicates the omission of letters.
Once you remember this, think what letters are left out. Y’all stands for you all, so y’all is the only logical, correct choice.
Summary
There is only one correct way to spell y’all, and that is with the apostrophe between the “y” and the “all.”
Y’all is a contraction of you all.
Ya’ll is a misspelling of y’all.
Contents
- 1 What is the Difference Between Y’all and Ya’ll?
- 2 When to Use Y’all
- 3 When to Use Ya’ll
- 4 Is Y’all Singular or Plural?
- 5 Can Y’all be Used in Formal Writing?
- 6 Trick to Remember the Difference
- 7 Summary
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This wikiHow teaches you how to select every selectable item on a page or in a window on your computer, phone, or tablet. Both Windows PCs and Macs have a few options for selecting all text, files, and images. If you’re using an iPhone, iPad, or Android, you can easily select all text you’ve typed onto a page, as well as selectable text on websites and in other apps.
Things You Should Know
- Press «Ctrl + A» (Windows) or «Cmd + A» (Mac).
- Or go to «Edit > Select All» if you’re using a Mac or Windows computer.
- Double-tap and select «Select All» in the menu that appears on iPhone, iPad, and Android.
-
1
Press Control+A on the keyboard. This fast keyboard shortcut will select all selectable items on the active window or page. For example, if you want to select everything in a Word document (including images and other objects), you can use this keyboard shortcut. Here’s how it works:
- Click the window or page that you want to select.
- Press Ctrl and A at the same time.
- Everything that’s selectable is now selected.
-
2
Use the Edit menu in apps. If you’re using an app that has an Edit menu, there will often be a Select all option in that menu. This tool works the same as using the Control + A keyboard shortcut, but you can access it through a menu instead.
- For example, let’s say you’re viewing a text file in Notepad. You can click the Edit menu and choose Select all to select all characters in the text file at once.
- Another example is in iTunes—if you want to select all songs currently displayed in the window, click the Edit menu and choose Select all.
- If Select all is greyed out, you can’t use select all on the current page or window.
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-
3
Use Windows File Explorer menus. If you’re in a File Explorer window (e.g., browsing your documents or viewing the This PC folder), you can use the menu items in the upper-left side of the window to select all.
- Open the folder containing the files you want to select.
- Click the Home tab at in the upper-left corner of the window.
- Click Select all in the «Select» section of the toolbar at the top of the window. Everything in the current panel is now selected.
-
4
Use the right-click context menu. In many cases, you can right-click a blank area of a window or website to bring up a context menu and choose Select All. This will typically select everything on the page, including text, photos, and other objects. Or, if you’re browsing files, it will select every file in the window or panel.
- If you don’t have a right mouse button, tap two fingers together on your mouse’s trackpad to bring up the menu.
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-
1
Press ⌘ Command+A on the keyboard. You can use this fast keyboard shortcut on nearly any window, page, or screen on your Mac to select everything that’s selectable. For example, if you want to select everything inside of your Pages document, including images and objects, you can use this keyboard shortcut. Here’s how to use it:
- Click the window or page that you want to select.
- Press Command and A at the same time. This will highlight everything that can be selected.
-
2
Use the Edit menu. If you’re using an app (including Finder) that has an Edit menu, you’ll often find a Select all option in that menu. It works the same as pressing Command + A, except you’ll access it through a menu, not a keyboard shortcut.
- For example, let’s say you’re viewing a list of files in a Finder window. You can click the Edit menu and choose Select all to quickly select all files in the open folder.
- Another example is iTunes—if you want to select all songs currently displayed in the window, click the Edit menu and choose Select all.
- If Select all is greyed out, you can’t use select all on the current page or window.
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-
1
Select all text that you’ve typed. If you’re using an app that allows you to type and you want to select all of the text you’ve entered, you can do so easily. This will work when composing a message in Messages or Mail, typing in the Notes app, into browser forms, and in virtually any other app that allows typing. Here’s how:
- Double-tap the first word you want to select. This highlights the word and places vertical selection bars on either side.
- Drag the selection bar on the right down and to the right until all of the text is selected.
- Or, to quickly select all text in a paragraph, just triple-tap the first word.[1]
- Or, to quickly select all text in a paragraph, just triple-tap the first word.[1]
- If you’re typing in a document in which you’ve inserted photos or other objects, this will select those objects as well.
-
2
Select everything in a document or on a website. This is similar to selecting text you’ve typed, but the steps are a little different. First, you’ll need to be using an app that has selectable text and/or images—emails, websites with text (as long as the text is actual text and not images), and the Amazon app all allow you to select text. Here’s how to select all text in these types of apps:
- Tap and hold the first word you want to select.
- Lift your finger when the word is highlighted and you see vertical selection bars on either side of the word.
- Drag the rightmost vertical selection bar down and to the right until you’ve highlighted everything on the page.
- Most social media apps won’t allow you to select all text.
- If the text you’re trying to select is actually an image (and it can be hard to tell), you usually won’t be able to select it.
-
3
Selecting all mail messages in the Mail app. Want to quickly select all of the messages in your inbox? If you’re using the Mail app on your iPhone or iPad, you can. Here’s how:
- Open the Mail app and go to your inbox. This will only work in the Mail app—you can’t select all of your text messages in the Messages app.
- Tap the Edit link at the top-right corner of your inbox.
- Tap Select All at the top-right corner.
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-
1
Select all text that you’ve typed. If you’re using an app that allows you to type and want to select everything you’ve typed, you can do so easily. This will work when composing an email, writing a text message, filling out a form on a website, and virtually anywhere else that allows typing. Here’s how:
- Double-tap the first word you want to select. This highlights the word, adds two rounded selection sliders to either side of the word, and displays a menu.
- Tap Select all on the menu.
- If you don’t see this option, try tapping the three dots to display more options.
- If you still don’t see it, drag the rightmost selection slider down and to the right until you’ve selected everything on the page.
- If the app you’re using lets you insert photos and other objects, this will also select photos and objects you’ve entered.
-
2
Select everything in a document or on a website. If you’re browsing a website, reading an email, or using another app that has selectable text and other objects, you can select everything on the current page easily. Just keep in mind that not all apps have selectable text. For example, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter don’t allow selecting all text. Here’s how to select all text on a page:
- Tap and hold the first word in the text you want to select. This highlights the word (don’t lift your finger).
- Drag your finger downward and to the right until you’ve highlighted everything else on the page.[2]
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Question
How do I copy and paste on Windows 7?
On any modern Windows computer, use {keypress|Ctrl|C} to copy and {keypress|Ctrl|V} to paste.
-
Question
How do I paste one page of a document?
Highlight it with the mouse. Right-click it and select and click copy. Click on the area you wish to put the text, then right-click and paste.
-
Question
How do you paste once you’ve selected with Apple?
Either press Control and the «V» key at the same time, or right-click (do this on a touchpad by clicking with two fingers; if you have a mouse, press control, then click while holding). Select «paste.»
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After selecting all information on a page or window, you can usually right-click or long-tap the selected area to bring up options (including options to copy and cut).
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Some apps will allow you to select just text, while others will also let you select images.
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When you want to write the southern American pronoun contraction of “you” and “all,” the correct form is “y’all.” “Ya’ll” is the wrong way to write this. The only exception is if you’re writing a story and you want to illustrate the speech of an uneducated or youthful character.
Americans have many quaint phrases. “Y’all” is one. But it’s specifically localized from the southern states like Texas, Tennessee, Alabama, and South Carolina. However, it has nationwide use.
“Y’all” in Context
There is a concept in English called “contracted pronouns.” A contraction is when two words combine to make one word, usually indicated by an apostrophe (‘) somewhere within the word. “Y’all,” is one of these but it’s a way to informally address people.
To make the contraction “Y’all,” place an apostrophe where you omit the “ou.” Ergo, this becomes a plural pronoun and is very useful when addressing more than one person.
Standard: Hey you all, we need to go to the store now!
Contraction: Hey y’all, we need to go to the store now!
Standard: I don’t know what you all were thinking.
Contraction: I don’t know what y’all were thinking.
Y’all For a Single Person
An alternative use of “y’all” is when you want to talk about a plural group of people but you’re currently only speaking to one person. This is because you’re also including the associated people with the person to whom you’re addressing.
Hi Sally, I saw your family earlier today. What time are y’all coming to church?
Official or Formal Writing
You would never use “y’all” in formal writing for letters, correspondence, or discussions of an official nature. While “y’all” isn’t entirely slang, it’s not ideal for professional purposes. You use it to talk to friends, family, or other people in a casual setting.
Why “Ya’ll” Is Incorrect
Word experts are adamant that “Ya’ll” is the wrong spelling. It’s not proper English to write it this way. However, creative writers and literary types will intentionally misspell some words to indicate the character of a person within the story. But this is not the norm and should not become a regular writing habit.
Conclusion
“Y’all” is the proper way to spell and use this contracted pronoun. “Ya’ll” is incorrect. Of all the confusion one can come across in the English language, this is one of the simpler ones to remember.
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Conor is the main writer here at One Minute English and was an English teacher for 10 years. He is interested in helping people with their English skills and learning about using A.I tools at work.