Get The "You" Outta Here: Home

When you reach puberty, you grow hair on your chest.

Download the Removing Second Person Handout and Practice:

For answers to the practice, visit a campus tutoring center near you.

For all academic papers in all college classes, students should eliminate the use of second person pronouns:

• you, your, yours
• we, us, our, ours

Sounds harsh, but unless an instructor specifically says otherwise, assume second person is to be avoided.

There are several reasons to avoid the use of "you" in academic writing:

• Causes confusion
• Addresses the reader
• Is imprecise
• Is inaccurate
• Shifts person
• Is too informal

Four ways to break the "you" habit include the following:

• Use nouns instead
• Use indefinite pronouns (everyone, someone, anything) instead
• Cut the "you" out altogether
• Avoid giving commands (where "you" is the implied subject)

Before submitting a paper, be sure to proofread it carefully to eliminate second person.

• The best way to spot second person is to print paper and read it out loud.
• Another way is to use the Find/Replace feature in your word processing software.