非特指的人称you不一定是代替第二人称的你，而有可能指任何人。
通常，代词you指说话者正在交谈的人或一群人。例如:
“You must complete this project by tomorrow!”
你必须在明天之前完成这个项目!”
“You are the best students I've ever had.”
“你们是我遇到过的最好的学生。”
“What do you plan to do about this?”
“你打算怎么做呢?”
有时候，“你”不是指任何一个人或任何一群人。相反，它指的是任何人或每个人。在这些情况下，“you”与“people”的意思相同:
“People have to work very hard to make a dollar these days.”“You have to work very hard to make a dollar these days.”
“It is so smoggy in Los Angeles, that people can barely breathe.”“It is so smoggy in Los Angeles, that you can barely breathe.”
“The only place people can get great pizza is in Chicago.”“The only place you can get great pizza is in Chicago.”
代词they也有类似的用法，但更常用来指一群特定的人:
“They say that it will be a cold winter this year.” (“They”一般指天气方面的专家。)
“They are going to raise taxes again.” (“They” 一般指政客或政府。)
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