If I was to start a correspondence with: Dear Fellow Surveyors; would this be offensive for the female surveyors included, or is "fellow" gender neutral?
TIA
Radar
In that respect it is non-gender specific.
fel·low
/?fel?/
noun
noun: fellow; plural noun: fellows
1. informal
a man or boy.
"he was an extremely obliging fellow"
synonyms: man, boy; More
person, individual, soul;
2.a person in the same position, involved in the same activity, or otherwise associated with another.
"he was learning with a rapidity unique among his fellows"
synonyms: companion, friend, comrade, partner, associate, coworker, colleague; More
peer, equal, contemporary, confrere;
I think that's perfectly acceptable.
But then again, my own "political correctness" has all the finesse of a turd in a punchbowl at an ice cream social.
Dear Colleagues maybe
I don't think it has a gender connotation in the sense you are using it.
The NFL changed it from Super Bowl L to Super Bowl 50, which certainly has the appearance of trying to be PC and not offend the "L" crowd. I never like roman numerals anyway, but still think it's crazy.
But using "fellow" in the context you are suggesting to address your peers seems quite appropriate. I suppose the topic matter could come into play, but every woman surveyor I know would just laugh.
Remember Lyndon Johnson?
He always started out speeches "My Fellow Americans, ...."
Although it was a different time then, when nobody gave a crap about PC, I think it is still perfectly acceptable today.
XLVIIII for 49 was not really a correct roman numeral. It should be IL. But it didn't look as sexy without some Xs in it. I'm surprised they didn't go with 5 Xs for 50, also not right but would sell well.
Oh, what the heck ...
I'm offended. So there! 🙂 😛
> If I was to start a correspondence with: Dear Fellow Surveyors; would this be offensive for the female surveyors included, or is "fellow" gender neutral?
Well, there's always:
Dear Co-practitioners,
Dear Washington Surveyors,
Dear Sister Surveyors and You Others,
Dear Y'all,
Dear Surveyors of the Same or Opposing Gender,
Dear Surveyors of Indeterminate Gender,
Dear Comrades,
Dear Surveying Jeopardy Contestants,
or just the perennial favorite:
Dear Winner in the Lottery of Life!
Cheerful greetings to all...........
I've never liked the use of "dear" when addressing anyone you would not call "dear" in person.
I like "Y'all".
> I like "Y'all".
Y'all is correct...NOT Dear Y'all, but HEY Y'ALL...
DDSM:beer:
I'd prefer "all y'alls".
Hey you,
[text of correspondence]
Get off my cloud,
RADAR
The masculine pronoun in the English language when addressing a mixed group of men & women with similar interests.
Phil Fedor LSIT
What is the plural of y'all?
Alla y'all!
Ah, but you are quoting proper English rules. That doesn't apply to many modern females. Note I didn't say ladies.
What is the plural of y'all?
> Alla y'all!
Is that Allah y'all if your working in the Persian Gulf?
> I'd prefer "all y'alls".
I believe "all y'all" is a third person plural preposition,
whereas "all y'all's" is possessive...
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