In modern English, pronouns have taken on a significance far beyond simple grammar. Asking someone which pronouns they use can reveal how they see themselves — and, increasingly, where they stand socially or politically. Words like “he,” “she,” and “they” now function not just as linguistic shortcuts, but as markers of identity.
Japanese, however, approaches pronouns — known as daimeishi (代名詞) — in a very different way.
One of the most striking contrasts is how rarely pronouns appear in everyday Japanese compared with English. This is largely because Japanese sentences do not require an explicit subject. Once the topic is understood from context, it can be omitted entirely. As a result, conversations can unfold at length without ever indicating the gender of the person being discussed.
In English, this kind of ambiguity is difficult to maintain. Speakers are often forced to choose between “he” or “she,” which historically made gender-neutral references awkward. The growing use of singular “they” emerged as a practical solution to that problem, long before it became a broader cultural touchstone.
Japanese sidesteps this issue altogether. Because subjects are routinely dropped, speakers can avoid gendered language naturally, without needing a neutral alternative. This means that in many cases, a listener may have no idea whether the person being talked about is male, female, or nonbinary — and that ambiguity is not considered unusual or confusing.
When pronouns are used in Japanese, they tend to carry strong social nuance rather than serving as neutral stand-ins. Choices can signal formality, intimacy, age, gender expression, or even regional identity. As a result, many speakers avoid pronouns altogether unless they are necessary or stylistically appropriate.
In this way, Japanese offers a fascinating contrast to English. While English is actively reshaping its pronoun system to reflect changing ideas about gender, Japanese has long relied on context, omission and indirectness to achieve much the same effect — quietly allowing speakers to communicate without pinning identity to a single word.