Linda K Sienkiewicz

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Yous got the last laugh: How my husband’s favorite pronoun was vindicated

March 17, 2025 By Linda K Sienkiewicz

Poster for the civil war movie Gettysburg

Who are yous really?

The first time I heard my husband refer to the people in our household collectively as “yous” I laughed out loud. I’d never heard the word. Donnie insisted it was a real word, and, furthermore, said he’d been using it all his life.

Much to his own peril. Apparently, he also used yous at work. His coworkers thought it was hilarious. He didn’t care. He kept using it.

Being a grammar nerd, I looked for the word in the dictionary. This was pre-internet; we had an actual hardcover edition. Yous was simply listed as plural for you. Dictionaries list many non-standard English words, however. It doesn’t mean that anyone other than my husband uses them. That’s what I told him. It didn’t stop him.

Vindication

Many years ago, he finally found glory in the film Gettysburg when Lieutenant General James Longstreet, played by Tom Berenger, used yous when referring to his men.

Donnie was watching the movie at home. He jumped out of his Lazy Boy, vindicated. He laughed and shouted, “I knew it! Did you hear that?” He couldn’t wait till Monday so he could inform his coworkers. The word had history. It was epic. Yous.

I was happy for him. He still remembers that moment. Lt. Gen. Longstreet points to a clump of trees as he’s planning the attack on Gettysburg and says, “That is where all yous will converge…”

Listen at the 4:02 mark. We found this clip by searching specifically for “yous” —Gettysburg is a 4 hour long movie, so I guess the usage of yous is unique.

Working class speak

Evidently, yous (or youse) is associated with working-class speech in New York and Philadelphia, as well as in parts of Ireland and Australia. Yes, it’s considered informal and nonstandard, but it serves the practical purpose of distinguishing plural you from singular you.

The word yous has an interesting history rooted in the evolution of English because of the need to clarify the plural. Since standard English doesn’t differentiate between singular and plural you, many dialects developed their own solutions—yous being one of them. Yous likely emerged in the late Middle Ages as English transitioned from using thou (singular) and ye (plural) to a single you for both.

Spell check is not at all happy with yous. I see that squiggly red line under the word throughout this text.

Plenty of languages have distinct plural forms for “you.” The French use vous; the Italians, voi; the Spanish, ustedes; and the Germans, ihr. Wouldn’t it be useful if English had an official plural form, too? Now that the ham-handed U.S. president has declared English the official language of the United States, I expect some staff person to hop right on that, right? We need clarification!

Our wacky plural versions

English speakers have created a handful of words for pluralizing you. Grammar teachers and nerds might not like them, but they get the job done.

  • Y’all is used primarily in the south as a shortened version of “you all.”
  • You-uns originates from the Ohio River Valley around Pittsburgh. It’s a shortening of “you ones,” a usage that goes as far back as Chaucer.
  • Of course, we have yous, and please note it is not spelled you’s.
  • Some people use you guys, which personally I cannot stand. I am not a guy.

Please, call us yous instead

I once lost count of the times a waitress called us you guys during a dinner out:

  • “Hi. I’ll be taking care of you guys this evening.”
  • “Are you guys thinking of an appetizer?”
  • “Are you guys ready to order?”
  • “You guys want another drink?”
  • “How’s dinner tasting so far, you guys?”
  • “Are you guys thinking of dessert?”

…on and on. I cracked up when she said “Thanks, you guys, for stopping in” at the end of the evening. She gave me a puzzled expression. My husband rolled his eyes because he knows this is a pet peeve of mine.

I vote for yous

black t-shirt with the word YOUS

I recently learned Pennsylvania-based Hog Island Press, founded deep in the heart of South Philly, has “The YOUS Shirt” because “And I hope yous guys love us, too.” This is going to be a birthday present for that someone special in my life.

Which do you prefer— y’all, yous, you-uns or you guys?


Thank you for visiting.
Linda K. Sienkiewicz is a writer, poet, and artist
Books: In the Context of Love | Gordy and the Ghost Crab | Sleepwalker
New novel,  Love and Other Incurable Ailments, coming fall 2026 from Regal House Publishing
Connect with Linda on social media: LinkTree

Leave a Comment Filed Under: It's Personal Tagged With: grammar, non-standard English, vindication, yous

Text me. or text me

September 25, 2023 By Linda K Sienkiewicz

Don't sweat punctuation… Michelle Markowitz, co-author of Hey Ladies!: The Story of 8 Best Friends, 1 Year, and Way, Way Too Many Emails, a book about off-the-rails group messages, is quoted in the … Continue reading >>

Filed Under: It's Personal, Writing Tagged With: grammar, punctuation, texting

Spelling matters

May 15, 2023 By Linda K Sienkiewicz

You want a bar with that bra? "You need a bar that suits you..." with an attractive senior woman next a row of lacy, front closure bras. I spotted this ad on my computer and took a screen shot … Continue reading >>

Filed Under: It's Personal Tagged With: grammar, spellling

I or Me: how to tell which to use

April 17, 2023 By Linda K Sienkiewicz

It’s not I - believe me! I overheard one of the moonshiners on the Discovery channel TV show say, ”Billy trusted Joe and I to keep the mash warm.” What kind of highfalutin' language is that for a … Continue reading >>

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: bad grammar, grammar, pronouns

A Plural Primer

October 24, 2022 By Linda K Sienkiewicz

Can you spot the error in each of these signs? An apostrophe is never used when pluralizing a noun! Apostrophes are for showing possession or contractions. Despite this, apostrophes are so … Continue reading >>

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: grammar, pluralization

I, Myself, or Me?

April 18, 2022 By Linda K Sienkiewicz

Myself? A letter to advice columnist Miss Manners begins: “My husband, myself and another couple went out for dinner last summer…” I read the rest of the question but kept bouncing back to that … Continue reading >>

Filed Under: Writing Tagged With: grammar, writing

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About Linda

Award- winning writer, poet & artist. Cynical optimist. Super klutz. Corgi fan. Author of two novels, a children's picture book, and five poetry chapbooks. More here.

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