Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[Henmi]

Hello
This is an explanation for " The knives are out", but I can't understand
why "them" is used.

If a lot of people want something unpleasant to happen to someone,
for example if they want them to lose their job, you can say that
the knives are out for the person.

I think "them" and " their" refer to someone.
Is "them" used instead of "him or her"?

Thank you.

[Zanthrick]

Yes, often "them" and "their" replace "him/her" and "his/her."
While it is not technically correct, everyone is use to it since for many it's smoother when the gender is unknown.

[Corey]

When people say "the knives are out" it generally means that a group of people are just about to do something (generally bad) to someone. So yes, you are correct.
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