# How do y'all use y'all **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 17, 2005, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160 "2005-01-17T05:18:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Uvula\_Donor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e19adc/32.png) [@Uvula\_Donor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uvula_Donor)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/21 "2005-01-17T12:46:21Z")
I was born and raised in New England, and I don’t use “y’all”. And I wish those of you from away would stop trying to use “ayuh” because you just don’t do it right. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sean\_Factotum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Sean\_Factotum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sean_Factotum)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/22 "2005-01-17T13:06:50Z")
1. A group. 2. What? 3. Grew up in SW Pennsylvania, never used “yins” seriously (although _everyone_ in my family does, and they all have that Pittsburgh accent. ---
**Author:** ![feppytweed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/feppytweed/32/4280_2.png) [@feppytweed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/feppytweed)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/23 "2005-01-17T13:22:30Z")
applies to a group of two or more. I am in MS. i think i would know… ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/24 "2005-01-17T13:32:54Z")
1. Hmmm. I was taught (by my Georgian Grandparents) that “y’all” refers to one person and “all y’all” refers to more than one person. 2. I, however, am a Yankee (Illinois, near Chicago) born and raised, so perhaps they were pulling my leg. ---
**Author:** ![monica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@monica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monica)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/25 "2005-01-17T13:56:16Z")
> [@betenoir](#): > > I’m a big fan of “y’all”. English is sorely lacking in a second person plural and I think it needs one. Until we adopt “vous”, I’m going with “y’all”. I agree with this, only I’m waiting for “vosotros” (The 2nd person plural that they use in Spain). Oh, and in case ya’ll want to know, I’m from Virginia, by the way. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/26 "2005-01-17T14:13:34Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > I was taught (by my Georgian Grandparents) that “y’all” refers to one person and “all y’all” refers to more than one person. Your grandparents were wrong. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/27 "2005-01-17T14:19:03Z")
> [@spoke-](#): > > Your grandparents were wrong. 🙂 Not surprising. She also baked hams for 7 hours and thought brussels sprouts should be a smooth paste when fully cooked. He was Archie Bunker with a Southern accent. I really didn’t like visiting there much. But y’all have fought my ignorance. Thank you kindly! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![hlanelee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3bc359/32.png) [@hlanelee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hlanelee)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/28 "2005-01-17T14:25:16Z")
1. Yes, I use y’all 2. It an obvious contraction of you all. If I am in company of people that think the use of contractions is improper or “backwoods”, I will say, “you fuckers” instead. 3. Check the location over in the corner, it’s in SC, by the way ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/29 "2005-01-17T14:26:03Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > I learned **very** quickly that “y’all” is seldom accepted and often laughed at outside of the southeast US (even many Europeans know the term and its “improperness”) and trained myself not to use it. Every so often I’ll still catch myself slipping but it’s less and less frequent these days. Aww. I find it very sad that you have been shamed into not using “y’all.” A little defiance can be fun. I encountered the same attitudes when I went off to college, but kept right on using the word. By the time I graduated, I had all the Yankees in my dorm using “y’all” unselfconsciously. ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/30 "2005-01-17T14:55:53Z")
Y’all is almost exclusively plural. Its use as a singular appears to be limited to 1.) certain Texas and Deep South enclaves, and 2.) people who have never been in the South who are faking Southern dialect for some reason. I think I understand some of the confusion; it’s not uncommon for one singular Southerner to meet another and to say, “How y’all been?” This sounds like it is meant to address only the other person, hence the confusion. However, it really refers to that person, his family, his crew, etc., since the other person likely knows all them, too. It’s like saying, “How are you and yours?”, but without sounding so lame. I’m from eastern Kentucky, where you hear “you’uns” just about as often as “y’all”. (“You’uns” has two clear syllables, as opposed to the Pennsylvania “yinz”.) ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/31 "2005-01-17T16:26:57Z")
OP= **carnivorousplant** > [@](#): > > OK, this is a poll for those of us who use the word. _1) Does ya’ll mean one one person or a group?_ That’s _y’all_, not "_ya’ll_, it’s the contracted form of _you all_ and it’s plural of course. \*2) Did y’all (dammit) \* 😕 Did we _what_ dammit? I didn’t damn nothing, dangitall! 2A) Did you learn to speak in Texas? [/QUOTE] What’s Texas got to do with it? Folks there say that petroleum gunk they used to could pump out from under their land is called “awl”. Did you click “Submit” before you were done with this? No offense, **'plant** , but you’ve got language problems here that have nothing to do with the use of “y’all”. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/32 "2005-01-17T16:27:58Z")
I, on the other hand, merely have coding problems. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![CynicalGabe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@CynicalGabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CynicalGabe)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/33 "2005-01-17T16:29:25Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > It is in Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary 1980, Smart Ass. Did y’all know that “Webster’s” is not copyrighted? Dammit! ---
**Author:** ![E.Thorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@E.Thorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E.Thorp)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/34 "2005-01-17T16:36:31Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Allright, Ya’ll, what the hell does “yins” mean? > 🙂 Pittsburghese for ‘y’all’ (lit. ‘you ones’). > [@hlanelee](#): > > 1. It an obvious contraction of you all. If I am in company of people that think the use of contractions is improper or “backwoods”, I will say, “you fuckers” instead. Splendid! This one made me laugh out loud. As for me, I think _y’all_ refers to a group. I learned to speak in upstate New York but acquired _y’all_ after moving to southern Ohio as a child…actually quite a few years later, when I was finally willing to overlook my parents’ prejudice against _y’all_ and other regionalisms. It’s a perfectly fine and even charming word. But why do so many people let the apostrophe creep (_ya’ll_)? That’s just wrong, y’all. ---
**Author:** ![Strainger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/strainger/32/244_2.png) [@Strainger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strainger)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/35 "2005-01-17T16:41:09Z")
1. More than one person. “All” preceding “y’all” is merely used for emphasis. An example from my youth: > [@Police officer](#): > > Yep, you been drinkin’. _All_ y’all been drinkin’! 1. Born in IN, grew up in GA. I still use it even though I live in AZ. I never get any grief for using it outside the South. Hell, I even use it when I’m teaching classes. (e.g. “Are y’all finished with the workshop?”) [hijack] Also, [I ain’t afraid to use “ain’t”](http://www.yourdictionary.com/library/drlang003.html). [/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/36 "2005-01-17T18:45:04Z")
1. “Y’all” is plural. But, if a single person is addressed using “y’all” (as in: “how y’all doing?”), it’s still plural. The question being asked is “how are you and your family?” That’s a really common usage of “y’all”. If a single person is asked something like “can y’all help me with this?”, the questioner is a Yankee. 2. I’m from Gainesville, FL which is in North Florida and Southern as opposed to South Florida which is Northern. ---
**Author:** ![Priam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/77aa72/32.png) [@Priam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Priam)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/37 "2005-01-17T19:25:19Z")
1. I find I use y’all when referring to groups of people in a vague sense. If I’m hanging around with two other people, I’m more likely to say “you two got serious issues” than “y’all got serious issues”. If the number is unknown or I’m referring to categories then I’ll use “y’all”. For the record, I can speak nearly immaculate English if I wish to but part of a language is appreciating the flavors and variations found therein. If we all spoke perfectly things wouldn’t be half as fun. Thus, I have come to embrace my roots and the vernacular that goes with them. 1. Northern Kentucky resident here, which gives me an odd blend of the Midwest and the Kentuckiana South. I find I can swap back and forth between the two pretty easily, but my default state is a mix and match between the two regionalisms. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/38 "2005-01-17T19:51:22Z")
Y’all is always plural in my neck of the woods. Houston. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_Rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_Rat)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/39 "2005-01-17T20:00:00Z")
I’m from Texas, still live here, and I’ve never heard anyone here use “y’all” to refer to a single person. “Y’all” is always more than one person, at least 'round these parts. 1, 2, 2A dammit. In fact I caught the first few minutes of “Not Another Teen Movie” on TV the other day and thought to myself how stupid the Big Kid (Billy Bob??) sounded when he was telling (only) the Foot Ball Jock, “Can’t wait for the big game, y’all!”. Must have been a Yankee screenwriter, y’all. ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160/40 "2005-01-17T20:49:47Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Dammit. > OK, this is a poll for those of us who use the word. > > 1. Does ya’ll mean one one person or a group? > > 2. Did y’all (dammit) > > 2A) Did you learn to speak in Texas? 1. A group, of course. 2a) Not Texas, the Southern, Central Valley of California. Lots of Okies 'round here. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-yall-use-yall/285160.md?page=3)