My pronouns are:
ve/ver
(Neopronoun “ve/ver”)
Example usage in sentences:
Table:
Other neopronouns
These neopronouns are less often used than their more popular counterparts, but it doesn't make them any worse (and some of them are historically notable). Some neopronouns' names are derived from the names of their creators. If your pronoun is not on the list, use the generator below!
- co/cos – Neopronoun “co/cos”
- e/em/eir – Spivak pronouns
- e/em/es – Neopronoun “e/em/es”
- hu/hum – Humanist pronouns
- ne/nem – Neopronoun “ne/nem”
- ne/nir – Neopronoun “ne/nir”
- per/per – Person pronouns
- s/he/hir – Neopronoun “s/he”
- thon/thons – Neopronoun “thon”
- ve/ver – Neopronoun “ve/ver”
- vi/vir – Neopronoun “vi/vir”
- vi/vim – Neopronoun “vi/vim”
- zhe/zher – Neopronoun “zhe/zher”
Examples from cultural texts:
Neopronoun “ve/ver” (ve/ver)
Greg Egan – Distress, 1995 ; The pronouns are used with reference to “asex” characters (it's a sci-fi novel in which some people rid themselves of sex characteristics and sexuality as a, sort of, political/philosophical manifesto) and generically (instead of, e.g. singular “they”).
- “Every journalist paraphrased vis subjects (p. 19)”
- “Ve was dressed in black jeans and a loose black T-shirt. (p. 95)”
- “Science and technology seemed to have given ver everything ve could ask for (p. 194)”
- “Kuwale hesitated and cast vis eyes down. (p. 195)”
- “I could hear ver breathing slowly, trying to calm verself (p. 227)”
Greg Egan – Diaspora, 1998
- “Yatima surveyed the Doppler-shifted stars around the polis, following the frozen, concentric waves of
color across the sky from expansion to convergence. Ve wondered what account they should give of
themselves when they finally caught up with their quarry.” - “Yatima couldn't speak for vis fellow traveler, but the answer for ver lay at the opposite end of the scale,
in the realm of the very simple, and the very small” - “The pewter-skinned citizen clasped vis hand to vis chest and said, “I'm Inoshiro.” The golden-furred citizen clasped vis hand to vis chest and said, “I'm Gabriel.” The black-silhouetted citizen gave vis hand a thin white outline to keep it from vanishing as ve moved it in front of vis trunk, and said, “I'm Blanca.””
- “Entrusting a version of verself to another citizen would have been unthinkable, back in Konishi. Yatima placed vis palm against Inoshiro's, and they exchanged snapshots.”
- “Yatima surveyed the Doppler-shifted stars around the polis, following the frozen, concentric waves of
Keri Hulme – The Bone People, 1983
- “And stop calling it 'it': yer got yer one great invention, remember Holmes? The neuter personal pronoun; ve/ver/vis, I am not his, vis/ve/ver, nor am I for her, ver/vis/ve, a pronoun for me.”
Hannu Rajaniemi – A Portrait of Salai (in Infinity’s End, edited by Jonathan Strahan) , 2018
- “That was Sfumato’s precedent, that was what ve did. That was what defined ver: running away from unfinished things. Ve had been doing it since before ve was born.”
Alastair Reynolds – On The Steel Breeze, 2013
- “Travertine’s a pretty divisive figure. Ve’s a friend of mine – or was, I suppose. When ve was last in trouble, I was one of those who pushed for a lighter punishment. The issue split the assembly – Sou-Chun was among those who felt we needed to make a clearer example of ver, if only to keep the rest of the local caravan happy.”
- “You spoke to Travertine yesterday, when ve came to your house. How would you describe vis state of mind?”
- “So Travertine had set verself on this path, constantly testing Assembly authority, chafing against restrictions, pushing vis luck. After the last censure, ve had done well to avoid imprisonment. But Travertine always rebuilt and pushed further. And Chiku had to agree with ver here – the Assembly always knew what Travertine was up to and chose not to intervene. Because on some unspoken level they wanted ver to succeed.”
What's the deal with pronouns?
Pronouns are those words that we use instead of calling someone by their name every time we mention them. Most people use “he/him” and “she/her”, so we automatically assume which one to call them based on someone's looks. But it's actually not that simple…
Gender is complicated. Some people “don't look like” their gender. Some prefer being called in a different way from what you'd assume. Some people don't fit into the boxes of “male” or “female” and prefer more neutral language.
This tool lets you share a link to your pronouns, with example sentences, so that you can show people how you like to be called.
Why does it matter? Because of simple human decency. You wouldn't call Ashley “Samantha” just because you like that name more or because “she looks like a Samantha to you”. Or even if she does have the name “Samantha” in her birth certificate but she absolutely hates it and prefers to use “Ashley”. And it's the exact same story with pronouns – if you don't want to be rude towards someone, please address them properly. The only difference is that we usually know names, but not pronouns. We introduce ourselves with a name, but not pronouns. Let's change that!