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…”
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
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 Reply