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their - 8 dictionary results
their
[th
air; unstressed ther] 
–pronoun
| 1. | a form of the possessive case of they used as an attributive adjective, before a noun: their home; their rights as citizens; their departure for Rome. |
| 2. | (used after an indefinite singular antecedent in place of the definite masculine form his or the definite feminine form her): Someone left their book on the table. Did everyone bring their lunch? |
he
1 [hee; unstressed ee] pronoun, nominative he, possessive his, objective him; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them; noun, plural hes; adjective –pronoun
| 1. | the male person or animal being discussed or last mentioned; that male. |
| 2. | anyone (without reference to sex); that person: He who hesitates is lost. |
–noun
| 3. | any male person or animal; a man: hes and shes. |
–adjective
| 4. | male (usually used in combination): a he-goat. |
Origin:
bef. 900; ME, OE hē (masc. nom. sing.); c. D hij, OS hē, OHG her he; see his, him, she, her, it 1
bef. 900; ME, OE hē (masc. nom. sing.); c. D hij, OS hē, OHG her he; see his, him, she, her, it 1
Usage note:
Traditionally, the masculine singular pronouns he1, his, and him have been used generically to refer to indefinite pronouns like anyone, everyone, and someone (Everyone who agrees should raise his right hand) and to singular nouns that can be applied to either sex (painter, parent, person, teacher, writer, etc.): Every writer knows that his first book is not likely to be a bestseller. This generic use is often criticized as sexist, although many speakers and writers continue the practice.
Those who object to the generic use of he have developed various ways of avoiding it. One is to use he/she or she/he (or he or she or she or he) or the appropriate case forms of these pairs: Everyone who agrees should raise his or her (or her or his or his/her or her/his) right hand. Forms blending the feminine and masculine pronouns, as s/he, have not been widely adopted, probably because of confusion over how to say them.
Another solution is to change the antecedent pronoun or noun from singular to plural so that the plural pronouns they, their, and them can be used: All who agree should raise their right hands. All writers know that their first books are not likely to be bestsellers. See also they.
Traditionally, the masculine singular pronouns he1, his, and him have been used generically to refer to indefinite pronouns like anyone, everyone, and someone (Everyone who agrees should raise his right hand) and to singular nouns that can be applied to either sex (painter, parent, person, teacher, writer, etc.): Every writer knows that his first book is not likely to be a bestseller. This generic use is often criticized as sexist, although many speakers and writers continue the practice.
Those who object to the generic use of he have developed various ways of avoiding it. One is to use he/she or she/he (or he or she or she or he) or the appropriate case forms of these pairs: Everyone who agrees should raise his or her (or her or his or his/her or her/his) right hand. Forms blending the feminine and masculine pronouns, as s/he, have not been widely adopted, probably because of confusion over how to say them.
Another solution is to change the antecedent pronoun or noun from singular to plural so that the plural pronouns they, their, and them can be used: All who agree should raise their right hands. All writers know that their first books are not likely to be bestsellers. See also they.
it
1 [it] pronoun, nominative it, possessive its or (Obsolete or Dialect) it, objective it; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them; noun –pronoun
| 1. | (used to represent an inanimate thing understood, previously mentioned, about to be mentioned, or present in the immediate context): It has whitewall tires and red upholstery. You can't tell a book by its cover. |
| 2. | (used to represent a person or animal understood, previously mentioned, or about to be mentioned whose gender is unknown or disregarded): It was the largest ever caught off the Florida coast. Who was it? It was John. The horse had its saddle on. |
| 3. | (used to represent a group understood or previously mentioned): The judge told the jury it must decide two issues. |
| 4. | (used to represent a concept or abstract idea understood or previously stated): It all started with Adam and Eve. He has been taught to believe it all his life. |
| 5. | (used to represent an action or activity understood, previously mentioned, or about to be mentioned): Since you don't like it, you don't have to go skiing. |
| 6. | (used as the impersonal subject of the verb to be, esp. to refer to time, distance, or the weather): It is six o'clock. It is five miles to town. It was foggy. |
| 7. | (used in statements expressing an action, condition, fact, circumstance, or situation without reference to an agent): If it weren't for Edna, I wouldn't go. |
| 8. | (used in referring to something as the origin or cause of pain, pleasure, etc.): Where does it hurt? It looks bad for the candidate. |
| 9. | (used in referring to a source not specifically named or described): It is said that love is blind. |
| 10. | (used in referring to the general state of affairs; circumstances, fate, or life in general): How's it going with you? |
| 11. | (used as an anticipatory subject or object to make a sentence more eloquent or suspenseful or to shift emphasis): It is necessary that you do your duty. It was a gun that he was carrying. |
| 12. | Informal. (used instead of the pronoun its before a gerund): It having rained for only one hour didn't help the crops. |
–noun
—Idioms| 13. | (in children's games) the player called upon to perform some task, as, in tag, the one who must catch the other players. |
| 14. | Slang.
|
| 15. | get with it, Slang. to become active or interested: He was warned to get with it or resign. |
| 16. | have it, Informal.
|
| 17. | with it, Slang.
|
she
[shee] pronoun, singular nominative she, possessive her or hers, objective her; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them; noun, plural shes.–pronoun
| 1. | the female person or animal being discussed or last mentioned; that female. |
| 2. | the woman: She who listens learns. |
| 3. | anything considered, as by personification, to be feminine: spring, with all the memories she conjures up. |
–noun
| 4. | a female person or animal. |
| 5. | an object or device considered as female or feminine. |
they
[they] ,–plural pronoun, possessive their or theirs, objective them.
| 1. | nominative plural of he, she, and it. |
| 2. | people in general: They say he's rich. |
| 3. | (used with an indefinite singular antecedent in place of the definite masculine he or the definite feminine she): Whoever is of voting age, whether they are interested in politics or not, should vote. |
Usage note:
Long before the use of generic he was condemned as sexist, the pronouns they, their, and them were used in educated speech and in all but the most formal writing to refer to indefinite pronouns and to singular nouns of general personal reference, probably because such nouns are often not felt to be exclusively singular: If anyone calls, tell them I'll be back at six. Everyone began looking for their books at once. Such use is not a recent development, nor is it a mark of ignorance. Shakespeare, Swift, Shelley, Scott, and Dickens, as well as many other English and American writers, have used they and its forms to refer to singular antecedents. Already widespread in the language (though still rejected as ungrammatical by some), this use of they, their, and them is increasing in all but the most conservatively edited American English. This increased use is at least partly impelled by the desire to avoid the sexist implications of he as a pronoun of general reference. See also he 1 .
Long before the use of generic he was condemned as sexist, the pronouns they, their, and them were used in educated speech and in all but the most formal writing to refer to indefinite pronouns and to singular nouns of general personal reference, probably because such nouns are often not felt to be exclusively singular: If anyone calls, tell them I'll be back at six. Everyone began looking for their books at once. Such use is not a recent development, nor is it a mark of ignorance. Shakespeare, Swift, Shelley, Scott, and Dickens, as well as many other English and American writers, have used they and its forms to refer to singular antecedents. Already widespread in the language (though still rejected as ungrammatical by some), this use of they, their, and them is increasing in all but the most conservatively edited American English. This increased use is at least partly impelled by the desire to avoid the sexist implications of he as a pronoun of general reference. See also he 1 .
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source
|
Link To their
| their (thâr) adj. The possessive form of they.
[Middle English, from Old Norse theira, theirs; see to- in Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Their
Their\, pron. & a. [OE. thair, fr. Icel. [thorn]eirra, [thorn]eira, of them, but properly gen. pl. of the definite article; akin to AS. [eth][=a]ra, [eth][=ae]ra, gen. pl. of the definite article, or fr. AS. [eth][=ae]ra, influenced by the Scandinavian use. See That.] The possessive case of the personal pronoun they; as, their houses; their country. Note: The possessive takes the form theirs (?) when the noun to which it refers is not expressed, but implied or understood; as, our land is richest, but theirs is best cultivated. Nothing but the name of zeal appears 'Twixt our best actions and the worst of theirs. --Denham.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : their
Spanish:
su, sus,
German:
ihr,ihre,
Japanese:
彼らの
their
c.1200, from O.N. þierra, gen. of þeir "they" (see they). Replaced O.E. hiera. Use with singular objects, scorned by grammarians, is attested from c.1300. Theirs (c.1300) is a double possessive. Alternate form theirn (1836) is attested in Midlands and southern dialect in U.K. and the Ozarks region of the U.S.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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