xenopronoun
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: xenopronouns
Etymology: From xeno- + pronoun.
Senses: examples: text: Themis touches upon the center to which discussions on who exactly lies behind the category tucute have moved on truscum subreddits – focusing less on the nonbinary figure, while constructing a, ususally young/teenage, person using neo- or xenopronouns (i.e. zir, xi) and deemed ‘inventing’ xenogenders, i.e. catgender (but also, as Themis remarks, agender for instance).
ref: 2022 spring, Han Amm, “What’s Behind the ‘Tucute’”, in Medicalizing Me Softly: An Autoethnography of Refusal, Master’s Thesis in Social Studies of Gender, Lund, Scania: Lund University, Department of Sociology, →OCLC, archived from the original on 25 Sep 2023, chapter 4, page 53:
text: The chat thread contains a multitude of expressions that were gender identity related: xenogenders, xenopronouns, godgender, astralgender. […] The prefix "xeno" implies "foreign" or "abnormal," so an assumption can be made that this gender identification is distinct and outside of cultural norms. This term is used to broaden the LGBTQ+ community's knowledge and acceptance of gender variation. A xenopronoun is a non-traditional pronoun used to express a non-binary or non-human gender identification. This word is used to acknowledge and respect the LGBTQ+ community's different gender identities and manifestations (Xenopronouns, n.d.).
ref: 2022–2023, Kristina Špokaitė, “The linguistic analysis of chat logs/threads found in r/nonbinary”, in Linguistic Normativity “from Below” in Virtual Communities of Practice (LGBTQ+ Forums), Study Programme, English and Another Foreign Language (Spanish), Vilnius: Vilnius University, Faculty of Philology, Institute of Foreign Languages, archived from the original on 05 Jul 2025, section III (Empirical research), subsection 6 (Analysis of r/nonbinary Reddit forum), page 48:
text: We read and discussed Maia Kobabe’s (2019) Gender Queer, the most banned book in the United States, in an English seminar. Many of the students were visibly uncomfortable with the topics brought out in the text: gender confusion and queering, non-binaristic thinking, multiple processes of coming out, xenopronouns [i.e., e/em/eir], and non-binary and trans healthcare.
ref: 2024 October 24, Aubry Threlkeld, “Postlude: Teaching Maia Kobabe’s Gender Queer (Aubry)”, in Miguel N. Abad, Gilberto Q. Conchas, editors, Repertoires of Racial Resistance: Pedagogical Dreaming in Transborder Educational Spaces (Ethnic Studies Revival), Gorham, Me.: Myers Education Press, →ISBN:
glosses: Synonym of neopronoun.
synonyms: word: neopronoun
examples: text: Pronouns: Words that replace a noun in a sentence such as “she/her”, “he/him”, or “they/them”. Alternatively, there are neopronouns like “xe/xem” or “ze/zir”. Xenopronouns are a subsection of neopronouns in which a different noun is used in place of a pronoun.
ref: 2022 June, “Appendix: Definitions”, in Pride Guide 2022: Youth Strategies for Tackling Gender-Based Violence in Our Schools (A National Youth Initiative), Ottawa, Ont.: Public Health Agency of Canada, →ISBN, archived from the original on 26 Oct 2022, page 12:
text: Some people use neo pronouns^([sic]) (for example xe/xem/xyr or ze/hir/hirs), so it is helpful to be familiar with the usage of those. […] Another thing, often tied to this, though they are vastly different, is the use of xenogenders and xenopronouns, which is often used by neurodivergent people. Some might feel connected to certain concepts or objects with their gender, leading them to use nounself pronouns that are often misunderstood or viewed as strange. Commonly used examples are “cat” or “starself” pronouns.
ref: 2022 June, Jonas Gesing, Mia Mbalisike, “Pride Month”, in Jonas Gesing, Mia Mbalisike, editors, The_Issue: The Official Newsletter of International School Ruhr, volume 1, number 8, Essen, Ruhr: International School Ruhr, page 7:
text: It allows "any personal pronouns." As written, the rule equally allows a party to designate nongendered plural pronouns ("they"/"them") in the place of he or she for first-person singular references. More importantly, the proposed rule is open to "neopronouns" and "xenopronouns" or "noun-self" references (ne, ze, xe/zem/xyr)^([sic]) fae/faer/faeself, kitten/kittenself), as advocated by some groups (e.g., the Human Rights Campaign).
ref: 2023 April 14, Douglas J. Curlew, Re: ADM File No. 2022-03-Proposed Amendment of MCR 1.109, Livonia, Mich.: Cummings, McClorey, Davis & Acho, via Michigan Courts, archived from the original on 05 Jul 2025, pages 1–2:
glosses: A pronoun associated with a xenogender.
examples: text: Also consider the emergence of neopronouns and xenopronouns. The New York Times explains neopronouns reflect one’s identity as “a person, place or thing.” […] It gets even crazier with xenopronouns, which are described as “a type of hypothetical neopronouns that cannot be understood by humans and/or expressed through human language.” Of course, the fact that they cannot be understood by anyone else makes the individual claiming them extra special.
ref: 2023 February 6, Daily Citizen Staff, “Leading Family Trends That Should Concern Everyone / Part 3”, in Daily Citizen, Colorado Springs, Colo.: Focus on the Family, archived from the original on 06 Feb 2023:
text: Non-binary is a term used by (mostly) young people to set him or herself outside of the biological reality of male and female. Often using made up pronouns (most famously the singular they/them), neopronouns (such as ze/zir, or frog/frogself) and xenopronouns (which cannot be pronounced or understood by humans - I can’t believe I’m actually writing these words!).
ref: 2023 November, Uknitted Kingdom [pseudonym], “Rat Utopia, Mouse Paradise, and Knutter Nirvana”, in Neil of Uknitted Kingdom [pseudonym], editor, BLOCKED, number 11, BLOCKED Magazine, archived from the original on 05 Jul 2025, page 17:
text: Sky News host Rita Panahi has mocked trans activist Jeffrey Marsh over “xenopronouns” which are sounds humans “can’t even make”. “What J.K. Rowling lacks are neopronouns and xenopronouns because, apparently, neopronouns aren’t crazy enough,” Ms Panahi said. “We now have pronouns that are just sounds that humans can’t even make.”
ref: 2024 June 18, “Lefties losing it: Rita Panahi mocks trans activist over ‘xenopronouns’”, in Sky News Australia, Sydney, N.S.W.: News Corp Australia, archived from the original on 05 Jul 2025:
glosses: A pronoun that cannot be pronounced or understood by humans.
Related terms: nounself pronoun