In “Pronoun Trouble,” John McWhorter explores the little words we use to describe ourselves and others.

However, that isn't always the case, and sometimes people's pronouns shift. For example, a person whose gender identity is fluid may use she/her pronouns at some times but not others. The pronouns ...

If we didn't have pronouns, we'd have to keep repeating our nouns and that would make our sentences awkward and repetitive. For example, if we didn't use pronouns a sentence might look like this ...