student asking question

Why does Santa say "her" for a piece of paper?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

English is a neutral language, so nouns are neither feminine nor masculine. However sometimes, feminine and masculine nouns and pronouns like "her", "she", "he" and "him" are used to replace "it" or "that". This dates back to Old English. Today, it is still common to refer to certain objects with feminine pronouns, especially vehicles, boats, and animals. It is less common to use feminine pronouns for smaller objects like paper, but some people still do this. Ex: My new Ferrari is gorgeous. Her seats are made of pure Italian leather. Ex: A: Nice boat! B: Yep, she's a beauty.

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