A subcategory of nouns that refer to a person or thing – traditionally, he/him, she/her, it/its, they/them.

Traditionally, males are referred to as he/him (e.g. he hurt himself on his table), and females by she/her (e.g. she hurt herself on her table), but the discussion around preferred pronouns has meant that individuals may ask to be referred to by pronouns that are different to what is traditionally expected; transgender individuals may adopt the pronouns of their gender identity (e.g. a woman who was assigned male at birth will ask to be referred to by she/her pronouns), or, in the case of nonbinary people, may wish to be referred to as they/them (e.g. they hurt themself on their table). A wide variety of other nonbinary or gender neutral pronouns also exist.

In the case of some genderqueer/genderflux or nonbinary individuals, as well as Drag Queens and Drag Kings, their pronouns may not be static; that is, depending on how they are presenting, their preferred pronouns may change (e.g. a Drag Queen may be referred to as she/her whilst in Drag, but he/him when not). Other individuals may not have any preference whatsoever.

When unsure, it is best practice to ask an individual which pronouns they prefer. It is considered polite and decent to respect an individual’s preferred pronouns and, aside from genuine mistakes, it is considered transphobic to not respect an individual’s preferred pronouns in much the same way it is to deadname them.