- They
- He He (h[=e]), pron. [nom. {He}; poss. {His} (h[i^]z); obj.
{Him} (h[i^]m); pl. nom. {They} ([th][=a]); poss. {Their} or
{Theirs} ([th][^a]rz or [th][=a]rz); obj. {Them}
([th][e^]m).] [AS. h[=e], masc., he['o], fem., hit, neut.;
pl. h[=i], or hie, hig; akin to OFries. hi, D. hij, OS. he,
hi, G. heute to-day, Goth. himma, dat. masc., this, hina,
accus. masc., and hita, accus. neut., and prob. to L. his
this. [root]183. Cf. {It}.]
1. The man or male being (or object personified to which the
masculine gender is assigned), previously designated; a
pronoun of the masculine gender, usually referring to a
specified subject already indicated.
[1913 Webster]
Thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. --Gen. iii. 16. [1913 Webster]
Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; him shalt thou serve. --Deut. x. 20. [1913 Webster]
2. Any one; the man or person; -- used indefinitely, and usually followed by a relative pronoun. [1913 Webster]
He that walketh with wise men shall be wise. --Prov. xiii. 20. [1913 Webster]
3. Man; a male; any male person; -- in this sense used substantively. --Chaucer. [1913 Webster]
I stand to answer thee, Or any he, the proudest of thy sort. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
Note: When a collective noun or a class is referred to, he is of common gender. In early English, he referred to a feminine or neuter noun, or to one in the plural, as well as to noun in the masculine singular. In composition, he denotes a male animal; as, a he-goat. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.
