<p>The neutral pronoun "they" has been voted word of the decade by US language experts, beating out other contenders that included "climate" and "meme".</p>.<p>"They" is used in English by a growing number of non-binary individuals, people who do not identify as either male or female. They prefer the plural neutral pronoun to bypass the traditionally male "he" or female "she".</p>.<p>"When a fundamental part of language like pronouns becomes a vital indicator of trends in society, linguists prick up their ears," said Ben Zimmer, head of the American Dialect Society, which studies the evolution of language.</p>.<p>He added in a statement Friday that the Society's selection of "they" was an indication of "how the personal expression of gender identity has become an increasing part of our shared discourse".</p>.<p>The recognition comes after US dictionary Merriam-Webster in December named "they" its word of the year.</p>.<p>Nonbinary people are enjoying increased representation on television and in pop culture. Among them is British artist Sam Smith, who recently revealed a preference for "they/them" pronouns "after a lifetime of being at war with my gender."</p>.<p>Tech giant Apple has added "neutral" emojis that don't distinguish between gender to the latest version of its operating system.</p>.<p>The American Dialect Society had previously named "they" word of the year in 2015.</p>.<p>Other contenders in the decade category, which is not limited to a single word, included #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, climate, emoji, meme, opioid crisis and woke, the Society said.</p>.<p>The 131-year-old society includes linguists, lexicographers, etymologists, grammarians, historians, researchers, writers, editors, students and scholars.</p>.<p>They previously chose "google" and "web" as words of the past two decades.</p>
<p>The neutral pronoun "they" has been voted word of the decade by US language experts, beating out other contenders that included "climate" and "meme".</p>.<p>"They" is used in English by a growing number of non-binary individuals, people who do not identify as either male or female. They prefer the plural neutral pronoun to bypass the traditionally male "he" or female "she".</p>.<p>"When a fundamental part of language like pronouns becomes a vital indicator of trends in society, linguists prick up their ears," said Ben Zimmer, head of the American Dialect Society, which studies the evolution of language.</p>.<p>He added in a statement Friday that the Society's selection of "they" was an indication of "how the personal expression of gender identity has become an increasing part of our shared discourse".</p>.<p>The recognition comes after US dictionary Merriam-Webster in December named "they" its word of the year.</p>.<p>Nonbinary people are enjoying increased representation on television and in pop culture. Among them is British artist Sam Smith, who recently revealed a preference for "they/them" pronouns "after a lifetime of being at war with my gender."</p>.<p>Tech giant Apple has added "neutral" emojis that don't distinguish between gender to the latest version of its operating system.</p>.<p>The American Dialect Society had previously named "they" word of the year in 2015.</p>.<p>Other contenders in the decade category, which is not limited to a single word, included #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, climate, emoji, meme, opioid crisis and woke, the Society said.</p>.<p>The 131-year-old society includes linguists, lexicographers, etymologists, grammarians, historians, researchers, writers, editors, students and scholars.</p>.<p>They previously chose "google" and "web" as words of the past two decades.</p>