Wouldn't it be great if a gender-neutral pronoun for "he" or "she" existed in English?
Source: tatoeba (544637)
Gender-neutral
Synonyms for "gender-neutral"
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Choosing the right synonym
- Sentence evidence is available for gender-neutral, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "gender-neutral".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "gender-neutral"
Keep "gender-neutral" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "gender-neutral" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "gender-neutral", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "gender-neutral" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Translations
14 translations across 12 languages.
Danish
1 entries- kønsneutral adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Dutch
1 entries- genderneutraal adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Esperanto
1 entries- genroneŭtrala adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Finnish
1 entries- sukupuolineutraali adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
French
1 entries- unigenre adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Georgian
2 entries- გენდერ-ნეიტრალური adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
- გენდერულად ნეიტრალური adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
German
2 entries- geschlechtsneutral adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
- unisex adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Korean
1 entries- 성중립적 adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Norwegian Bokmål
1 entries- kjønnsnøytral adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Norwegian Nynorsk
1 entries- kjønnsnøytral adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Russian
1 entries- ге́ндерно-нейтра́льный adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Swedish
1 entries- könsneutral adj (not having, indicating, or being restricted on the basis of, gender)
Sample sentences
16 total sentences available.
If one were to use the pronoun "one" it would go a long way towards relieving the inconvenience of not having a gender-neutral pronoun in English.
Source: tatoeba (544647)
In Sweden a gender-neutral pronoun was introduced to make the distinction between male and female grammatically unnecessary.
Source: tatoeba (1559024)
In August 2014 the Swedish Building Workers' Union decided that the gender-neutral pronoun "hen" ("he or she, or neither he nor she") should be used instead of "han" ("he") in forthcoming versions of its by-laws.
Source: tatoeba (3500933)
Showing 4 of 16 available sentences.
Common questions
How should I check whether a synonym fits "gender-neutral"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.