grammar - Can a word "it" be used to refer to a person as well?

If so, could anyone give an example pls?

Answer

It is almost never appropriate to use it for a person. Sometimes, we seem to use it when asking about somebody's gender. E.g.:

A: My wife's had a baby!

B: Is it a boy or a girl?

A: It's a boy!

but here it is just a dummy pronoun.

If you don't know the gender, you have the following options:

1. Use an arbitray gender and stick to it (usually he).


2. Use he / she.


3. Use they. (This is the most "natural" way for native English speakers, although some consider it a little informal.)


4. Use a descriptive noun. E.g. the customer.

Note that it is very offensive to refer to transexuals, transvestites, hermaphrodites, and so on as it. If the person adopts a male name, use he. If the person adopts a female name, use she.