3 ms·
The comment was worded poorly, since it was not clear if "they" was gender neutral, singular or plural, which could have referred to Gustave Eiffel and the scu
by IncRnd 4y ago
The comment was worded poorly, since it was not clear if "they" was gender neutral, singular or plural, which could have referred to Gustave Eiffel and the sculptor. Either would have fit in that situation.
However, it is even more acceptable to refer to someone by their name, in this case Gustave Eiffel, instead of only using pronouns. Furthermore, "the architect" can be used, since it singularly denotes a specific person. There are many constructions that are better than using the imprecise "they".
- shreyshnaccount 4y agoThey probably refers to the people who had say in the design process :/
- saalweachter 4y ago> The comment was worded poorly, since it was not clear if "they" was gender neutral, singular or plural, which could have referred to Gustave Eiffel and the sculptor. Either would have fit in that situation. Does it matter? Sometimes you want an imprecise "they".
- IncRnd 4y agoIt matters when the writer wishes for the reader to understand the written words as intended.