Editing Singular they (section)

====Use with a pronoun antecedent====
The singular antecedent can be a pronoun such as ''someone'', ''anybody'', or ''everybody'', or an interrogative pronoun such as ''who'':
* With ''somebody'' or ''someone'':
{{blockquote|"I feel that if ''someone'' is not doing ''their'' job it should be called to ''their'' attention."|source=an American newspaper (1984); quoted by Fowler.{{sfn|Fowler|Burchfield |1996|p=776}}}}
* With ''anybody'' or ''anyone'':
{{blockquote|"If ''anyone'' tells you that America's best days are behind her, then ''they''{{'}}re looking the wrong way." President George Bush, 1991 State of the Union Address;{{sfn|Bush|1991|p=101}} quoted by Garner{{sfn|Garner|2003|p=175}}}}
{{blockquote|"''Anyone'' can set ''themselves'' up as an acupuncturist."|author=Sarah Lonsdale|source="Sharp Practice Pricks Reputation of Acupuncture". ''Observer'' 15 December 1991, as cited by Garner{{sfn|Garner|2003|p=175}}}}
{{blockquote|"If ''anybody'' calls, take ''their'' name and ask ''them'' to call again later." Example given by Swan{{sfn|Swan|2009|loc=§528}}}}
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* even where the gender is known or assumed:
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{{blockindent|"It will be illegal for ''anyone'' to donate an organ to ''their'' wife, husband, adopted child, adopted parent or close friend."<!--Removed this for the same reason as the sub-heading{{efn|At the time, the gender was known or assumed because same-sex marriage [[same-sex marriage#Legal recognition|had not yet been legalized]] in any country.}}--><ref>{{cite news |last1=Ballantyne |first1=Aileen |title=Transplant Jury to Vet Live Donors |url=https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=AWNB&docref=news/0F92980622D0429E&f=basic |url-access=registration |access-date=2022-01-02 |work=The Sunday Times |date=1990-03-25 |archive-date=15 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230915172909/https://infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/user/login?destination=document-view%3Fp%3DAWNB%26docref%3Dnews/0F92980622D0429E%26f%3Dbasic |url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn|Article accessible for free using a library card number from many public libraries}}}}
* With ''nobody'' or ''no one'':
{{blockquote|"''No one'' put ''their'' hand up." Example given by Huddleston et al.{{sfn|Huddleston|Pullum|2002|p=1458}}}}
{{blockquote|"''No one'' felt ''they'' had been misled." Example given by Huddleston et al.{{sfn|Huddleston|Pullum|2002|p=493}}}}
* With an interrogative pronoun as antecedent:
{{blockquote|"''Who'' thinks ''they'' can solve the problem?". Example given by Huddleston et al.; ''The Cambridge Grammar of the English language''.{{sfn|Huddleston|Pullum|2002|p=1473}}}}
* With ''everybody'', ''everyone'', etc.:
{{blockquote|"''Everyone'' promised to behave ''themselves''." Example given by Huddleston et al.{{sfn|Huddleston|Pullum|2002|p=493}}}}

=====Notional plurality or pairwise relationships=====
Although the pronouns ''everybody'', ''everyone'', ''nobody'', and ''no one'' are singular in form and are used with a singular verb, these pronouns have an "implied plurality" that is somewhat similar to the implied plurality of collective or group nouns such as ''crowd'' or ''team'',{{efn|Especially in British English, such collective nouns can be followed by a ''plural verb and a plural pronoun''; in American English such collective nouns are more usually followed by a ''singular verb and a singular pronoun''.{{sfn|Fowler|2015|p=161}}}} and in some sentences where the antecedent is one of these "implied plural" pronouns, the word ''they'' cannot be replaced by generic ''he'',{{sfn|Kolln|1986|pp=100–102}} suggesting a "notional plural" rather than a "bound variable" interpretation {{See below|{{section link||Grammatical and logical analysis}}, below}}. This is in contrast to sentences that involve multiple pairwise relationships and singular ''they'', such as:
{{blockindent|"''Everyone'' loves ''their'' mother."{{sfn|Duží |Jespersen |Materna|2010 |p=334}}}}
{{blockindent|{{"'}}I never did get into that football thing', she said after ''everyone'' returned to ''their'' seat."{{sfn|Davids|2010}}}}
{{blockindent|"''Everyone'' doubts ''themselves''/''themself'' at one time or another."}}

There are examples where the antecedent pronoun (such as ''everyone'') may refer to a collective, with no necessary implication of pairwise relationships. These are examples of plural ''they'':
{{blockindent|"At first ''everyone'' in the room was singing; then ''they'' began to laugh." Example given by Kolln.{{sfn|Kolln|1986|pp=100–102}}}}
{{blockindent|"''Everybody'' was crouched behind the furniture to surprise me, and ''they'' tried to. But I already knew ''they'' were there." Example given by Garner.{{sfn|Garner|2003|p=643}}}}
{{blockindent|"''Nobody'' was late, were ''they''?" Example given by Swan.{{sfn|Swan|2009|loc=§528}}}}
Which are apparent because they do not work with a generic ''he'' or ''he or she'':
{{blockindent|"At first ''everyone'' in the room was singing; then ''he or she'' began to laugh." Example given by Kolln.{{sfn|Kolln|1986|pp=100–102}}}}
{{blockindent|"''Everybody'' was crouched behind the furniture to surprise me, and ''he'' tried to. But I already knew ''he'' was there."}}
{{blockindent|"''Nobody'' was late, was ''he''?"}}
In addition, for these "notional plural" cases, it would not be appropriate to use ''themself'' instead of ''themselves'' as in:
{{blockindent|"''Everybody'' was crouched behind the furniture to surprise me, but ''they'' instead surprised ''themself''."}}