Written 2025-03-19
I have a longstanding, deep-seated hatred of the words "y'all" and "folks." I don't even really hate the words themselves, but I hate how and how much they're used today when they absolutely should not be.
"Y'all" is thrown around a lot when addressing a group of people. I don't know whether this stems from trying to sound hip/casual or from some kind of political correctness angle, but I have met people who use "y'all" who literally did not know that "you" is both a singular and a plural pronoun. If you are addressing a group of people, you do not need a special word – just say "you." The only time I am not irked by the use of "y'all" is when it is used by individuals who are from a region or culture in which "y'all" is a commonly-used and traditional word, for example speakers of Southern U.S. English or AAVE. However, being in Atlantic Canada, 99.9% of the time I hear the word, it is being used by a speaker who doesn't fit into any such category.
In the case of "folks," I do not see any situation where it is appropriate to use, except when trying to sound like a late-night talk show host or Looney Tunes character, e.g. "that's all folks," etc. This one definitely gets used a lot when trying to be politically correct, but I genuinely cannot comprehend what could possibly be wrong or objectionable about the word "people," especially considering that's what the word "folks" is derived from anyway. Instead of saying "[adjective] folks" and immediately nullifying any effort to make your writing even remotely professional by making yourself sound ridiculous, simply say "[adjective] people" or "people who are [adjective]." The word "folks" is ridiculous.