Final answer:
The second person pronoun is the word “you,” which is used to address the listener or reader directly. It functions as both subject and object in sentences and possesses a possessive form (“your,” “yours”). It is part of the personal pronouns and is gender-neutral.
Step-by-step explanation:
The second person pronoun in English grammar is “you”. It is used to refer to the person or group being spoken to. For instance, in the sentence “You are welcome to join us,” the word “you” is the second person pronoun, directly addressing the listener or reader. This pronoun falls into the category of personal pronouns, which also include first person (I, we) and third person (he, she, it, they) pronouns.
Pronouns have different forms based on their grammatical function in a sentence: subjective case (when the pronoun is the subject), objective case (when the pronoun is the object), and possessive case (when the pronoun shows ownership). While “you” is primarily used as both subject and object, it can also possess a possessive form (“your” for singular and “yours” for plural).
In contrast to the traditional use of masculine pronouns as the default for hypothetical persons, there is a movement towards using gender-neutral language and pronouns, such as the singular “they.” Nevertheless, the second person pronoun “you” has always been gender-neutral and consistent in its form for both the singular and plural references.