Editing Singular they (section)

===Contemporary use of ''he'' to refer to a generic or indefinite antecedent===
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''He'' is still sometimes found in contemporary writing when referring to a generic or indeterminate antecedent. In some cases, it is clear from the situation that the persons potentially referred to are likely to be male, as in:

{{blockquote|"The patient should be informed of his therapeutic options."|source=a text about prostate cancer (2004){{sfn|Weiss|Kaplan|Fair|2004|p=147}}}}
In some cases the antecedent may refer to persons who are only ''probably'' male or to occupations traditionally thought of as male:
{{blockquote|"It wouldn't be as if ''the lone astronaut'' would be completely by ''himself''." (2008){{sfn|Atkinson|2008}}}}
{{blockquote|"Kitchen table issues&nbsp;... are ones ''the next president'' can actually do something about if ''he'' actually cares about it. More likely if she cares about it!"|author=Hillary Rodham Clinton (2008){{sfn|Spillius|2008}}}}
In other situations, the antecedent may refer to an indeterminate person of either sex:
{{blockquote|"Now, a writer is entitled to have a Roget on ''his'' desk."|author=Barzun (1985)|source={{sfn|Barzun|1985}} quoted in ''Merriam-Webster's Concise Dictionary of English Usage''{{sfn|Merriam-Webster|2002|p=734}}}}
{{blockquote|"A Member of Parliament should always live in ''his'' constituency."{{sfn|Huddleston|Pullum|2002|p=492}}}}
In 2010, Choy and Clark still recommend the use of generic ''he'' "in formal speech or writing":{{sfn|Choy|Clark|2010|p=213}}

{{blockquote|"...&nbsp;when indefinite pronouns are used as antecedents, they require ''singular'' subject, object, and possessive pronouns&nbsp;..."<br>
"''Everyone'' did as ''he'' pleased"|author=Choy|source=Basic Grammar and Usage}}

In informal spoken English, plural pronouns are often used with indefinite pronoun antecedents. However, this construction is generally not considered appropriate in formal speech or writing.

{{blockquote|Informal: ''Somebody'' should let you borrow ''their'' book.{{br}}
Formal: ''Somebody'' should let you borrow ''his'' book.|author=Choy|source=Basic Grammar and Usage{{sfn|Choy|Clark|2010|p=213}}}}

In 2015, ''Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage'' calls this "the now outmoded use of ''he'' to mean 'anyone{{'"}},{{sfn|Fowler|2015|p=367}} stating:{{sfn|Fowler|2015|p=372}}
{{Blockquote|text=From the earliest times until about the 1960s it was unquestionably acceptable to use the pronoun ''he'' (and ''him'', ''himself'', ''his'') with indefinite reference to denote a person of either sex, especially after indefinite pronouns and determiners such as ''anybody'', &nbsp;... ''every'', etc., after gender-neutral nouns such as ''person''&nbsp;... [but] alternative devices are now usually resorted to. When a gender-neutral pronoun or determiner&nbsp;... is needed, the options usually adopted are the plural forms ''they'', ''their'', ''themselves'', etc., or ''he or she'' (''his or her'', etc.)}}

In 2016, ''Garner's Modern English'' calls the generic use of masculine pronouns "the traditional view, now widely assailed as sexist".{{sfn|Garner|2016|p=460}}