# xe

> English word · Pronoun · IPA /ziː/ · frequency rank #40,524

## Definitions
1. they (singular). Gender-neutral third-person singular subject pronoun, coordinate with gendered pronouns he and she.

## Etymology
Apparently independently invented by several people, including Don Rickter. The pronoun appeared in the Unitarian Universalist publication UU World on May 1, 1973, and Mario Pei gave Rickter credit on page 145 of his book Weasel Words (1978).

## Easily confused with
- **xi** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xi)
- **XL** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xl)
- **XP** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xp)
- **XO** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xo)
- **XM** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xm)
- **Xt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xt)
- **XR** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xr)
- **XXX** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xxx)
- **XML** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xml)
- **Xie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xie)
- **XYZ** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xyz)
- **Xin** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xin)
- **Xia** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xia)
- **XPS** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xps)
- **Xue** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xue)
- **Xena** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-xena)
- **zee** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-zee)
- **ze** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xe-vs-ze)
- **X** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/x-vs-xe)
- **XC** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/xc-vs-xe)

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/xe