you guys

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English

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Pronunciation

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Pronoun

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you guys

  1. (colloquial, in the plural) You.
    Hey you guys!

Usage notes

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  • 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

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Also constructed with alternative forms of plural you:

Synonyms

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

See also

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References

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  1. ^ “‘Hi guys!’: what’s wrong with this greeting?”, in The Guardian[1], 2018 August 1
  2. ^ Jenée Desmond-Harris (2015 June 11) “Why I’m finally convinced it's time to stop saying "you guys"”, in VOX[2]