ESL General English Grammar Questions

ESL General English Grammar Questionshttp://www.englishforums.com/English/EslGeneralEnglishGrammar-Questions/Forum12.htmAsk your questions on grammar and get your sentence checked. We answer lots of different types of general English grammar questions here. <font color=red>DO NOT post paragraphs and compositions here. Post them in our <a href="http://www.englishforums.com/English/EssayReportCompositionWriting/Forum9.htm"><b>Essay, Report and Composition Writing Forum</b></a>.</font>enXMOD (Build: 3616.28671)Re: Pronounshttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#649454Thu, 26 Mar 2009 10:37:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:649454Kooyeen0http://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#649454http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-649454.xml"One" and "he" can be used as genderless pronouns, and they can be mixed together in the same sentence too. I personally hate "one" because it sounds way too formal to me... at least in American English. Is it just my impression? How likely is someone to use "one" in speech? Anyway, I usually just don't use "one" and I say or write "a person" or "someone" instead. As for genderless "he", I personally avoid it as well, but it's not a matter of being politically correct. It's just that it's odd, because "he" and "him" are automatically connected to "a guy" or "a man" by my brain, and perhaps that happens...Re: Pronounshttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#649388Sun, 26 Apr 2009 09:37:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:649388evanescence1http://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#649388http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-649388.xmlThanks so much for the responses. This is a great site. I'm actually a member of a debate forum and the sentence I needed corrected was mine. I was referring to another poster who misspelled his own screen name. Then, he said that in correcting his spelling, I made my own mistakes. However, I always thought that 'he' could be used to refer to someone in general just as 'one' is. English can be very confusing! lolRe: Pronounshttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#648686Mon, 26 Jan 2009 10:37:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:648686Yankee2http://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#648686http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-648686.xmlHi evanescence, and welcome to the site. Ask your friend what "he" means in this sentence: He who laughs last, laughs best. In view of the fact that "one" was used in the beginning of the sentence, I suppose the use of "one" and "one's" would create a better balance in the second half of the sentence. On the other hand, using "one" in the beginning and then "he" and "his" in the second half of the sentence might be looked at as something the author did for stylistic effect -- i.e. start off with a very generally stated question (in essence, about "anyone") and then finish with words that more strongly suggest a particular male person. Nowadays,...Re: Pronounshttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#648670Thu, 26 Mar 2009 10:37:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:648670Philip3http://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htm#648670http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-648670.xmlWelcom to the forums, Evan! (We abbreviate a lot, here.). Your first post is an interesting one, and you should be aware that it will most likely not be answered conclusively. There are many opinions about our (English speakers') lack of a thrid-person gender-free pronoun or adjective. My opinion: both of your corrections are good. I agree that two pronouns (one, he) should not be used together in the same sentence to refer to the same person.Pronounshttp://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htmSun, 26 Apr 2009 09:37:35 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:648655evanescence4http://www.englishforums.com/English/Pronouns/hnrwd/post.htmhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-648655.xmlI have a strange question. Could this sentence be correct? "How can one be taken seriously if he can't even spell his screen name correctly?" Some guy another forum (who thinks he's some sort of grammar expert, said the following: "one" does not equal "he" one is the indefinite pronoun for a human agent he is the pronoun we use when there is a particular person in question and this person is in fact a male. you cannot use these two pronouns so signify the same person... corrections: How can one be taken seriously if one can't even spell one's screen name correctly? or How can he be taken seriously if he can't even spell his screen name correctly? I need some good explanations...