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In my native Texan English, "y'all" can certainly act as a singular polite "you" (EDIT: though it is not terribly common). I often use "Howdy, how y'all doin?"
by verditelabs 3y ago
In my native Texan English, "y'all" can certainly act as a singular polite "you" (EDIT: though it is not terribly common). I often use "Howdy, how y'all doin?" as a polite greeting to people I don't know regardless of the number of people I am addressing, though switch to just "you" after making acquaintance. Funny enough, "howdy" is a contraction of the older "how do ye" and some people still consider it both a greeting _and_ an inquiry, so in some cases it's redundant, and others it isn't, depending on the listener.
- lokar 3y agoSee also: yinz
- lstamour 3y agoThat’s interesting. As a non-Texan, I’d assumed that since y’all is a contraction that it would signify a more casual tone in the same way that “He’ll” is less formal than “He will”, etc.
- J_Shelby_J 3y agoY’all is a perfectly cromulent gender neutral way to address a group of people in a professional setting.
- lupusreal 3y agoIf you're not Southern and/or an AAVE speaker, then saying yall is cringe.
- bxparks 3y agoWait, wat? I always thought that "y'all" was a contraction of "you all", so meant the "plural you" instead of the "singular you".
- amanaplanacanal 3y agoI think you have to say “all y’all” for the plural.
- majormajor 3y agoThis Texan's understanding: "Y'all" = plural you "All y'all" = "all of [plural] you" as distinct from "some of you/y'all" Don't think I've ever heard a singular y'all. "How ya doin'" would be the singular version of "How y'all doin"
- verditelabs 3y agoFor me, "y'all" has multiple forms "y'all" - explicitly addressing >1 person "y'all" - explicitly addressing 1 person while implicitly addressing >1 people. I might say "how y'all doin" to a friend, implying "how are you and your family doing" "all y'all" - >>1 person or addressing >1 person that was not included in the previous "y'all" "y'all" - explicitly and implicitly addressing 1 person whom I have not made acquaintance with. If I were working as a server in a restaurant and had a single person come in, I may address them with "y'all". "What can I get y'all?" is the same as "what can I get you?" but the "y'all" gives it some extra politeness or an "emphatic southern accent"
- JoshTriplett 3y agoThis often comes up in such discussions, but no, both "y'all" and "all y'all" are plural. They're useful for distinguishing between smaller and larger groups. For instance, if a couple of members of a family are visiting, you could say "you" (the person you're speaking to), "y'all" (the whole group visiting), or "all y'all" (you and the rest of your family who aren't here). Or if multiple groups are visiting, "y'all" might be one group and "all y'all" might be everyone.
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- naniwaduni 3y agoIt would hardly be the first time a second-person plural turned into a formal second-person singular...
- rightbyte 3y agoThere is always a slide. "You" implicitly means "thou and thine underlings" when used in singular. Which makes in polite. "y'all" will probably share the same fate in English.
- pruetj 3y agoInteresting on the “y’all”. I’m a Texan and have never addressed a singular person as y’all. If I do address a person as y’all as in “How are y’all doing?”, it’s assumed I’m speaking of the family unit that person belongs to rather than the individual. While we Texans might find it polite or friendly, in the corporate world I’ve been told to avoid using it in emails.
- verditelabs 3y agoI think you're right about the implicit group/family aspect in many cases. If I'm taking to one friend and say "how are y'all doing" then that friend's family or ingroup is certainly implied in the question. The singular polite "y'all" I'm referring to is generally used when the other party is not known. F.ex. I regularly, though certainly not always, hear clerks, waiters, or other service industry workers using "y'all" singularly when asking "what can I get y'all to eat" or "y'all need anything else" when speaking to exactly one person, and I use it that way myself.
- pruetj 3y agoAh, got it. I know what you are referring to now. Yea, it is seen in hospitality more often.
- stavros 3y agoContrarily, I use it more and more in work contexts, as it's the most convenient second person plural you can use.
- pessimizer 3y ago> it’s assumed I’m speaking of the family unit that person belongs to rather than the individual. I think this is the formal singular "y'all" that people keep referring to. It can sometimes be short for "you and your family," which is why you would see it in greetings and goodbyes e.g. "How are y'all doing today" or "I hope to see y'all again soon." For signs of formality, it has the indirection of not addressing the person directly (like "your grace" "your honor" or "your mercy"), and is usually used as an stylized expression of concern. To my ear, "How was y'all's holidays?" sounds really professional, like how your lawyer would start a meeting.
- DonHopkins 3y ago[flagged]
- fanf2 3y agoRe. “howdy”, in (somewhat old-fashioned) posh English speech, “how d’you do?” as a greeting is not an enquiry: the idiomatic response is to say “how d’you do” in return. Weird.
- jmclnx 3y agoAnd from another part of the country, we use "yous", though that has been fading too.