DEEP DIVE

Pronunciation

• Hir – “here”
• Hirs – “heres”
• Hirself – “hereself”
• Ze – “zee”

Ze, Hir, Hirs, Hirself

These gender-neutral pronouns can be used to refer to people who are non-binary, genderfluid, genderqueer, trans, and/or don’t identify with the gender binary. Ze pronouns are often used alongside hir pronouns, with different uses for different tenses and forms, usually “ze, hir, hirs, hirself,” used like “they, them, their, theirs, and themself,” “she, her, hers, and herself,” or “he, him, his, and himself.”

More Gender-Neutral Pronouns

Ze, Hir, Hirs, Hirself are one set of gender-neutral pronouns. Other commonly used gender-neutral pronouns include they/them/their, ze/zem/zeir, and xe/xir/xirs. Trans people sometimes use binary or non-binary pronouns, depending on what their gender is and how they identify.

The best way to avoid using the wrong pronouns to refer to someone is to ask them which ones they use and to let them know which ones you use.