Dictionary.com has put the definition of the imaginary pronoun ze into its collection of words. .“The neopronoun 'ze' has now been added to dictionary.com and thesaurus.com,” said former Portland State University philosophy professor Peter Boghossian in a Sunday tweet. .The definition said ze is a person being discussed or last mentioned. It said it is used as a neopronoun in place of gendered pronouns such as he and she. .The example sentence given for ze was my friend did not want to go to the party, but zhe got up and danced when hir favourite song came on..Another definition provided for ze was a generic and unspecified person previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context. .Ze’s usage was first recorded in 1970-1975, based on the German pronoun sie..The definition said gender-neutral pronouns were proposed as far back as the mid 1800s, especially when about progressive ideas about women’s rights. It said using ze and other gender-neutral pronouns has been motivated by discussions about gender identity. .The definition went on to say some people feel uncomfortable being referred to as he or she. It added using ze as a gender-neutral singular third-person pronoun is limited because of resistance to replacing English pronouns. .Other words related to ze are you, he, she, it, they, ve, xe, and zie. .The University of North Carolina (UNC) published a pamphlet in July saying neopronouns should be used because sex and gender are not binary. .READ MORE: THOMAS: Only two sexes? Time to start learning about neopronouns.“Some examples include: xe/xem/xyr, ze/hir/hirs, and ey/em/eir,” said UNC. .“Neopronouns can be used by anyone, though most often they are used by transgender, non-binary, and/or gender nonconforming people.”
