You guys in one word

Как известно, в английском языке местоимение you используют при обращении и к одному человеку, и к нескольким. Другими словами, you — это и «ты» (один человек), и «вы» (несколько человек). Однако, наверняка вы слышали в фильмах обращения:

• you-all (сокращенно, y’all) — это обращение к нескольким лицам, распространенное в южных штатах США.
• you guys — неформальное обращение к нескольким лицам, популярное в разных странах, регионах.

You-all или y’all [jɔːl] — это буквально «вы все». Используется точно так же, как мы говорим «вы», обращаясь к нескольким лицам.

You, Marty, stay here, and y’all come with me. — Ты, Марти, оставайся здесь, а вы (обращается к группе лиц) идите со мной.

Do you-all want anything else? — Вам нужно что-нибудь еще? (к группе лиц)

Y’all know nothing about Texas. — Вы ничего не знаете о Техасе (к группе лиц)

How did you-all end up in our town? — Как вы оказались в нашем городке? (к группе лиц)

Обратите внимание:

• You-all (y’all) не используется для вежливого обращения к одному человеку, как «вы» в русском языке.
• You-all (y’all) — это региональное, диалектное слово, стойко ассоциирующееся с южными штатами США (Техас, Луизиана и др.) Вы можете услышать его в вестернах, фильмах, действие которых происходит на американском Юге.

Кстати, помимо «y’all» для южного диалекта американского английского характерны слово ain’t и двойное отрицание. Часто они используются все вместе:

Y’all ain’t know nothing! — Вы ничего не знаете!

Подробнее об этих явлениях читайте в статьях:

• Что значит слово AIN’T в английском языке?
• Двойное отрицание в английском языке – когда его нельзя использовать, а когда можно

Обращение YOU GUYS

Куда чаще, чем y’all, встречается обращение «you guys» — буквально «вы, ребята». Оно используется по отношению к группе лиц, причем как М, так и МЖ и даже Ж. Впрочем, в последнем случае могут использовать вариант «you girls», «you gals» (girl, gal = девушка).

Have you guys seen a black kitten over here? — Вы не видели здесь черного котенка? (к группе лиц)

Could you guys please step aside from the car? — Не могли бы вы отойти от машины, пожалуйста? (к группе лиц)

Часто «you guys» (как и «y’all») используют, обращаясь к одному человеку, чтобы было понятно: подразумевается не это лицо, а некая группа, к которой этот человек относится.

Do you guys take cash only? — Вы принимаете только наличные? (подразумевается, «вы» — сотрудники магазина)

Do you guys have ryazhenka in Mexico? — У вас есть ряженка в Мексике? (у «вас», то есть у мексиканцев вообще).

«You guys» часто переводят как «вы, ребята» — часто такой перевод вполне подходит, но нужно учитывать, что так обращаются не только к ребятам, но и к ребятам+девчатам и даже просто девчатам.

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English[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

• (stressed)
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈju ˌɡaɪz/
• (unstressed)
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈju ˌɡaɪz/, /ˌju ˈɡaɪz/
• (in vocative expressions)
  • (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌju ˈɡaɪz/

Pronoun[edit]

you guys

1. (colloquial, chiefly Canada, US, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Britain) You (plural).

   Hey you guys!

Usage notes[edit]

• The term guy is generally restricted to males, as in Was that a guy or a girl?, but the form you guys may be used for groups of any combination of genders whether it is all male, all female or any combination.
• Some speakers don’t perceive this form as gender-neutral and thus avoid it.^[1][2]
• Unlike y’all or the French vous, you guys is typically used only as an identifier, meaning it is said only once in a short conversation, and thereafter you is used. This is due to Modern English’s lack of differentiation between singular and plural «you«. For example:

  I’m going to be on the outside basketball court at noon if you guys want to practice. You should bring some water because it’s going to be hot.

• Generally the standard your is used as the possessive. However, possessive forms like you guys’ and you guys’s are also used; your guys’s (with a change of you to your) is nonstandard, limited to colloquial or dialectal speech.

Alternative forms[edit]

Also constructed with alternate forms of plural you:

• yous guys
• youse guys
• youze guys

Synonyms[edit]

• see the list of other second-person pronouns in you

See also[edit]

• you gals
• yinz

References[edit]

Listen up, everyone: we know you all have questions, so let’s talk about the terms guys and you guys. You may be asking if there are any good substitutes for such useful terms. The answer is yes, and we have suggestions for each and every one of you. (Including some that we just used without y’all even noticing it).

Is guys gender-neutral?

For years, the term guys and expressions like you guys have been commonly employed to address groups regardless of the gender of the group’s members, including by women addressing other women.

Despite the long history of this kind of use, such terms nevertheless carry gendered origins and connotations. The singular guy, for example, is never used to address or refer to an individual girl or woman. Applying the terms guys and you guys indiscriminately can end up excluding, ignoring, or creating discomfort for some people—particularly women and nonbinary people.

For these reasons, some people prefer to avoid using such terms, because they prefer not to be addressed in these ways or want to respect the preferences of those who don’t.

Gender-neutral words for guys

There’s no doubt that the word guys is useful and, for many people, extremely frequently used. It can be hard to stop using language that comes so naturally, especially when it seems hard-coded into the way we communicate. But there are plenty of similar—and very simple and familiar—terms that can serve all the same functions with complete gender-neutrality.

We’ve done our best to avoid clunky approximations that often miss the mark tone-wise or overstep familiarity (not all strangers like to be called friends, for example). Here are some suggestions for replacing guys or avoiding its use.

names

Here’s a simple alternative to saying guys or you guys: address people with their names.

you

When thinking about alternatives to you guys, the simplest solution is often to just drop the guys. You is used by itself as a plural in this way all the time.

y’all

Y’all is a contraction of you all, a construction that English speakers in the US South have found useful for centuries. There are similar regionalisms (like yinz, you-uns, yous, and youse), but these are far less widespread and recognizable than y’all, whose use has spread beyond the South.

you all, all of you, all

You all and all of you are options that come with a lot of the same benefits as y’all but without the regional association. They can be used in many of the same ways that you guys is used.

For example:

• What did you all do this weekend?
• Do you all have some time to help me with this?
• I can’t believe all of you did this for me.
• Hey, all of you, come look at this.

The word all can be used by itself as a term of address for groups.

For example:

• Hey, all, check this out.
• Attention, all: please gather round.

each of you

To address individuals within a group, you can use the phrase each of you.

For example:

• Each of you will have a chance to ask a question.

you both, both of you, you two

You both, both of you, and you two function the same way as you all and all of you except that they are reserved for addressing two people, instead of larger groups.

For example:

• What did you both do this weekend?
• Do both of you have some time to help me with this?
• I can’t believe you two did this for me.

Of course, these phrases can be easily varied to address specific numbers of people, as in the three of you, you four, all five of you, etc.

folks, you folks

Addressing people by actually using the word people can be tricky—it can be used to sound positive (Good job, people!), but it’s also associated with less polite use (Come on, people, get it together!).

What about people vs. peoples or persons? Read more about these terms.

A good alternative is folks, which, like y’all, has some built-in friendliness. And the phrase you folks can easily stand in for you guys.

For example:

• What did you folks do this weekend?
• Hey, folks, come look at this.
• Are you folks interested in looking at the dessert menu?

If you feel like folks sounds too, well, folksy, there are also some very general options.

everyone, everybody

Easy, go-to options to address a large group of people are everyone and everybody.

For example:

• What did everyone do this weekend?
• Hey, everybody, come look at this.

All of the options to this point have been very general. But there are also options that work for more specific situations, such as when you want to be more informal or when you’re communicating in the classroom, the workplace, or with a team.

team, squad, crew, etc.

Informal collective terms of address like these are best reserved for people you’re familiar with, such as your close colleagues at work or a group of children.

For example:

• Nice work, team.
• OK, squad, listen up.
• Hey, crew, settle in and let’s get started.

students

In classroom settings, the obvious option is students (which also works as an easy-to-remember alternative to the gendered boys and girls).

kids, children

Parents who want to avoid using the word guys (when addressing a son and daughter, for example) may be grasping for a term that packs as much meaning as the exasperated inflection of it (“Guys. Guys.”)—the one that’s meant to simultaneously scold and generate immediate attention (used upon occasions such as discovering wet clothes between couch cushions). In this case, may we suggest applying that same inflection to gender-neutral alternatives, such as kids, children, or little squirrels. (Finding ways to simultaneously express affection and frustration is among the main challenges of parenthood.)

peers, colleagues

These options for a professional setting can convey a sense of equality and warmth. If you feel like it would sound sincere, you could even throw in an adjective like esteemed. In the case of peers, though, just make sure that the people you’re addressing actually are (or consider themselves) your peers.

friends

As mentioned before, not all strangers are comfortable being addressed as friends, so reserve this one in most cases for your actual friends. And don’t miss the opportunity to develop your own very specific and highly informal terms of address for your friend group, such as sibs from different cribs (shout-out to whatever Tumblr user coined this one).

Speaking of highly informal terms of address, that brings us to a related question.

Here are 10 more ways to be more inclusive with your language.

Is dude gender-neutral?

Much like guys and you guys, the word dudes is often used to informally address friends regardless of gender. While the singular dude can be used this way, too, it’s more commonly used in a way similar to how the singular guy is often used—to specifically refer to a man or boy, as in I’ve never seen that dude before—who is he?

Because of this strong association, some people avoid using the words dude or dudes when addressing mixed-gender groups, especially those they don’t know. And using the phrase dudes and dudettes (with the female counterpart dudette) still has the problem of excluding nonbinary people in the same way that the phrases ladies and gentlemen and boys and girls do.

But don’t worry, there are options.

Gender-neutral alternatives for dude, bro, and similar terms

Some similar terms are buddy, pal, mate, champ, and boss. Though these are all gender-neutral, keep in mind that these have all been traditionally applied to men and boys, so some people might recoil at being referred to in these ways (apart from the obvious reason that such terms are intentionally over-the-top).

One alternative to using dude by itself is to substitute the word yo. It’s an interjection rather than a term of address, but it carries a lot of the same energy.

For example, instead of saying You missed it, dude! or You missed it, bro!, try saying You missed it, yo!

Bonus: yo can also be used to express the same subtle emotions that dude can—namely to indicate that you’re exasperated (Dude. Seriously. Stop. → Yo. Seriously. Stop.) or impressed (DUDE! → YO!).

• #1

I’ve noticed there is an English equivalent to the Spanish vosotros/ustedes: «you guys»
I know it’s only colloquial spoken English, but my question is: can you say «you guys» addressed to women/girls, as vosotras?

• #2

Yes, we do. «Guys» isn’t really gender-bound.

• #3

Thanks, that was fast!

Also: Does anybody use «you lot» for the same case? Is it British or just outdated?

• #4

I don’t think it’s outdated, I like it … it’s not «usual» and sounds very snarky and sarcastic to me.

But I bet you find lots of Americans that don’t use it. PS You really should have openend a new thread for this, and me, well … I shouldn’t have answered. I just realized that! Toodles!

• #5

You’re right, it should belong to a new thread! thanks anyway

• #6

But, while we’re at it, yes it is British and in common use here – not snarky/sarcastic at all!

• #7

«Guys» isn’t really gender-bound.

Well wait a minute. I agree that «you guys» isn’t gender-specific, and maybe also other cases in which people are being directly addressed («Hey guys! Time to go.»). But if I say «A guy I know told me …» that would only be interpreted as a male. In fact, not only is «guy(s)» normally viewed as referring to males, it’s often used specifically to distinguish males from females: «Guys tend to like to … while girls like to …»

Does anybody use «you lot» for the same case? Is it British or just outdated?

… I bet you find lots of Americans that don’t use it.

LOTS of Americans don’t use it?? I’d say the great majority of Americans don’t use it. «you lot» sounds extremely British to me. Several Americans have told me they’ve never even heard the expression.

• #8

To back up my British compatriot.
In BE, both «you lot» and «you guys» are very common colloquial expressions, neither gender specific nor old-fashioned.

• #9

Yes, we do. «Guys» isn’t really gender-bound.

But if you were talking to just two girls, wouldn’t it better to say you girls rather than you guys?

• #10

But if you were talking to just two girls, wouldn’t it better to say you girls rather than you guys?

My daughters would say «you guys.» I would say «you girls»: a generation difference

• #11

I would use «you guys» for more than one person regardless of gender. Also I had never heard the expression «you lot» until fairly recently. I’ve never heard it where I live in the US. If it is used here, I’d be curious to know where.

• #12

But if you were talking to just two girls, wouldn’t it better to say you girls rather than you guys?

You could. Lis says her daughters would still use «you guys.» That’s a British response. In my area, «guys» doesn’t raise a red flag, it’s very casual, I wouldn’t think twice about using it to address a couple of female friends.

It’s still «formally» a gender distinguisher, though, and Dan elsewhere in the thread points out A USE where we would (I would) still distinguist.

It’s clearly not a big deal. Native speakers will still find fault with you where they wouldn’t dream of correcting another native speaker. So figure that one out!

• #13

Well wait a minute. I agree that «you guys» isn’t gender-specific, and

Hold on a second. I used the term «gender-bound», not «gender-specific», and I wouldn’t say the two terms mean the same thing.

• #14

«Guys» is a fairly recent import into BrE. There are still some BrE speakers who don’t use it for men, let alone women. But there is also a question of register here: «You lot» in BrE suggests familiarity and possibly disdain. It’s the kind of thing a sergeant-major could say to the troops on parade. You won’t hear «When you lot come back from coffee, we’ll look at the latest trends in franchising» at the high-powered conference organised by the business school.

Entonces, diría que «you lot» no equivale al 100% (ni mucho menos) a «vosotros»/»ustedes».

• #15

Wow, thank you guys for all the interesting input!

• #16

I have never heard of «you lot» until right now. Interesting.

• #17

I’ve heard «you lot», I may even say it from time to time, but it’s not common here. There’s the use, as in «The whole lot of you are being sent to prison!» which I think might be slightly more common here.

• #18

«You lot» here only if you’re trying to sound British for some reason, such as being jocular.
«You guys» is fine as a gender-neutral term, but only in informal situations. «You all» is an alternative. Non-natives should not say «y’all.»

You guys, what’s going on? How come we routinely say “guys” or “you guys” when talking to a group of two or more?

Whenever we speak or write, we are automatically voting just by choosing which words to use. Every sentence of this entire column, for example, casts votes for the words I’m using. This explains why most of the ingenious new words invented by authors like Gelett Burgess (A Classic Dictionary of Words You Have Always Needed, 1914), Faith Popcorn (Dictionary of the Future, 2001) or Lizzie Skurnick (That Should Be a Word, 2015) never take hold. People enjoy the ingenuity and humor but don’t often adopt the proposed words as part of their everyday vocabulary. Unless they are actually put to use, words don’t become part of our language.

A notable, even astonishing, example of a new word gaining success by popular vote—with or without anyone consciously wishing for it—is “guys.”

Pronouns—short words or phrases that take the place of nouns—are at the heart of our language. They are so often spoken or written that they always get many votes, so they rarely change. From the earliest times that we have records of English, 1500 years ago, there have been three types of personal pronoun, each with singular and plural. So we have, scarcely changed from ancient times (making allowance for variations in form and pronunciation), three sets of pronouns:

First person, talking or writing about oneself:

• Singular: I, me, my, mine
• Plural: we, us, ours

Second person, the writer or speaker addressing another:

• Singular: thou, thee, thine
• Plural: you, ye, your

Third person, talking or writing about someone other than me or you:

• Singular: he, she, it and, in some cases, they
• Plural: they

This pattern shows only slight variation from then to now—with one major exception, culminating in the 18th century: the loss of the second-person singular.

Why was that? In addition to indicating an audience of two or more, the second-person plural (“you”) was trying to do double duty. It was becoming a sign of respect when addressed to one person. By implication, then, “thou” was stigmatized. If someone addressed you as “thou,” it became natural to assume that the speaker had less respect for you.

So over the course of around a thousand years, with plural “you” encroaching on the singular territory of “thou,” the latter finally gave up the struggle and yielded the singular second person to “you,” which was already the plural. Speakers and writers no longer could tell whether an instance of the second person was singular or plural.

For the next two centuries, people had to make do with this ambiguity, as they looked for a good way to signify a plural “you.”

They tried, for example, putting a plural “s” on “you,” making it “yous” or “youse,” both odd looking. Others tried adding a word after “you” to indicate plural: “you people,” “you folks” and “you ones,” or more colloquially “you-uns,” abbreviated “yinz.” Some added a word specifying the audience, like “you ladies.” None of these options had much widespread success, except for the special case of “you all,” also “y’all.”

Meanwhile, while no candidate was attractive enough to step into the shoes of “thou,” a word was born that would twist and turn on its way to success. It came from the terrifying near-success and utter defeat of the Gunpowder Plot, a scheme to explode 36 barrels of gunpowder under the House of Lords in London on Nov. 5, 1605, when Lords and Commons and bishops and other nobility and royalty gathered in that one room for the annual opening of Parliament. The arch-villain who nearly succeeded in blowing to bits hundreds of leading officials of King James’ Protestant government so that Catholics could take their place was an English Catholic gentleman and soldier named Guy Fawkes. He was in the basement under the House of Lords, ready to light the fuses, when a search party caught him just in time.

Soon his name was on everyone’s lips, as he was interrogated, tortured, tried, convicted and executed before the end of January 1606. But that wasn’t enough for the relieved legislators, who realized that they would likely have been killed if the Gunpowder Plot had succeeded.

That led to the pivotal moment in the history of “guy”: Parliament approved a “Fifth of November Act,” that is, “An act for publick thanksgiving to Almighty God every year on the fifth day of November.” The new holiday would feature special religious services during the day and bonfires at night, lighting fires to mock the man who hadn’t succeeded.

In the fires they burned effigies of the Pope, Guy Fawkes and other archenemies of the moment. They referred to the effigies of Fawkes as “guys.” And then some people began to use “guys” to refer to actual people: men of the lowest and most depraved kind. This was early in the 18th century, more than 200 years ago.

Scarcely anybody noticed, but speakers and writers then began to view “guys” (not Guy) more positively. “Guys” began to shift meaning, to become a term for working-class men, then every human male, from baby boys to ancient men. Speakers and writers found it useful to have a generic term that didn’t require differentiating among categories of males.

Then by the middle of the 20th century, women began using the word too. They increasingly used “you guys” when addressing others in the plural, regardless of gender. More and more speakers unconsciously voted for “guys,” till that was that: it was the people’s choice.

In recent years, some concerned citizens have pushed back against the idea that it’s an egalitarian term, embracing us all—and it is of course possible that language could once again change. But regardless of our reasons, until an alternative gets enough votes to replace it, “guys” will retain the top spot in the second person plural domain of the English language.

Allan Metcalf is the author of The Life of Guy: Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot, and the Unlikely History of an Indispensable Word, available now from Oxford University Press.

Contact us at letters@time.com.

If you don’t want y’all this is a toughy…in many cases just you or you all works, but not every case. For example how does, «Hey you/you all, lets go get some icecream» sound when addressing a group? Not ideal right? This is where the charm of y’all really shines.

I won’t address the word folks besides just saying it doesn’t always carry the vibe you want and can feel stuffy or corporate at times, making your icecream invitation to the group feel like a work trip. It does have its place though sometimes, but usually only useful to those leading some group in a professional manner.

There are other options though and my favorite, despite how silly it sounds, is «peoples». It is clearly incorrect english, and if nobody heard it used before they would think you are english 2nd language, but since most people now get that it is used to convey a light hearted and silly energy, it can work for most cases where you or you all doesn’t work.

Another option is using a cheeky plural adjective that fits the goal. In the case of an icecream invite to your lgbtqia friends it could be, «Hey you queers, lets get some icecream»…or if it is a message to your family about something serious, «Hey (insert last name)’s this is important», or if it is to gather a bunch of rambunctious kids, «Hey you maniacs, get over here». It is not always easy to find the perfect adjective so this one takes a little fast thinking, but I find it is not only useful but develops a deeper rapport with people.

Lastly, I might reconsider y’all for being on the chopping block. It may feel like appropriation, but I assure you southern people don’t mind…they mostly just prefer not being made fun of for using it. Besides, its none of our business what people think of us right…so just use what term you like and don’t worry what others think! You aren’t hurting anyone by using it and if someone thinks less of you for using it without an accent they are petty.

you guys — перевод на русский

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