diff --git a/reference/pcre/pattern.modifiers.xml b/reference/pcre/pattern.modifiers.xml
index 057ea80b03..048601edc7 100644
--- a/reference/pcre/pattern.modifiers.xml
+++ b/reference/pcre/pattern.modifiers.xml
@@ -127,7 +127,7 @@ $html = preg_replace(
         <para>
          The above example code can be easily exploited by passing in a string such as
          <literal>&lt;h1&gt;{${eval($_GET[php_code])}}&lt;/h1&gt;</literal>. This gives
-         the attacker the ability to execute arbitrary PHP code and as such gives him
+         the attacker the ability to execute arbitrary PHP code and as such gives them
          nearly complete access to your server.
         </para>
         <para>