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Apple adds pronoun fields with privacy focus to Contacts app on iOS 17

iOS 17 and watchOS 10 introduce a new way to easily swap contact information between iPhones, Apple Watches, or both. NameDrop lets you control what information you share over AirDrop without having to create a separate contact card. NameDrop isn’t the only update to the contact card experience in iOS 17, however. iOS 17 introduces a widely requested feature to the Contacts app in the form of a new pronouns field.

People often include pronoun preferences in email signatures and on social media, but saving this information to the Contacts app meant manually creating a field in the notes section. Now there’s a preset field where pronoun preferences can be saved.

The pronouns field isn’t just useful with contact cards for others; you can add your own pronoun preferences to your personal contact card as well. Once doing so, your pronoun preferences will be shared along with your other contact information when you trade cards with someone.

It’s not just a basic text field, either. Apple lets you select between a number of languages, and the app includes an explainer for how to use three forms of pronouns with grammatical accuracy.

Importantly, Apple includes a helpful privacy policy for pronoun entries.

“Pronouns are only used on your devices by supported Apple apps,” the company says. “They are not shared with Apple or third-party developers.”

You can find the new pronouns field on iOS 17, iPadOS 17, and watchOS 10 now. macOS Sonoma will be available later this month.

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Avatar for Zac Hall Zac Hall

Zac covers Apple news, hosts the 9to5Mac Happy Hour podcast, and created SpaceExplored.com.

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