their
[ th air; unstressed th er ]
/ ðɛər; unstressed ðər /
pronoun
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.
(used with a singular indefinite pronoun or singular noun antecedent in place of the definite masculine his or the definite feminine her): Someone left their book on the table. It's good for the teacher to have high expectations for their students.
Compare
theirs.
Origin of their
Definition for their (2 of 5)
he
1
[ hee; unstressed ee ]
/ hi; unstressed i /
pronoun, nominative he, possessive his, objective him; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them.
the male person or animal being discussed or last mentioned; that male.
anyone (without reference to gender); that person: He who hesitates is lost.
noun, plural hes.
any male person or animal; a man: hes and shes.
adjective
male (usually used in combination): a he-goat.
Origin of he
1usage note for he
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 gender (
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.
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.
Definition for their (3 of 5)
it
1
[ it ]
/ ɪt /
pronoun, nominative it, possessive its or (Obsolete or Dialect) it, objective it; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them.
noun
(in children's games) the player called upon to perform some task, as, in tag, the one who must catch the other players.
Slang.
- sex appeal.
- sexual intercourse.
Origin of it
1
before 900; Middle English, variant of Middle English, Old English
hit, neuter of
he1
usage note for it
See
me.
Definition for their (4 of 5)
she
[ shee ]
/ ʃi /
pronoun, singular nominative she, possessive her or hers, objective her; plural nominative they, possessive their or theirs, objective them.
the female person or animal being discussed or last mentioned; that female.
the woman: She who listens learns.
anything considered, as by personification, to be feminine: spring, with all the memories she conjures up.
noun, plural shes.
a female person or animal.
an object or device considered as female or feminine.
Origin of she
Definition for their (5 of 5)
they
[ th ey ]
/ ðeɪ /
usage alert about they
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 singular indefinite pronouns or singular nouns of general personal reference (which are often not felt to be exclusively singular):
If anyone calls, tell them I'll be back soon. A parent should read to their child. 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 related case 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 generic
he or the awkward
he/she and
he or she when the antecedent’s gender is not known or when the referent is of mixed gender:
The victim had money and jewelry taken from them. It’s hard to move an aging mother or father from their long-term home.
However, while use of they and its forms after singular indefinite pronouns or singular nouns of general personal reference or indefinite gender is common and generally acceptable, their use to refer to a single clearly specified, known, or named person is uncommon and likely to be noticed and criticized, as in this example: My hair stylist had their car stolen. Even so, use of they, their, and them is increasingly found in contexts where the antecedent is a gender-nonconforming individual or one who does not identify as male or female: Tyler indicated their preferences on their application.
And although they may be used as a singular pronoun, they still takes a plural verb, analogous to the use of "you are" to refer to one person: The student brought in a note to show why they were absent. See also he1.
However, while use of they and its forms after singular indefinite pronouns or singular nouns of general personal reference or indefinite gender is common and generally acceptable, their use to refer to a single clearly specified, known, or named person is uncommon and likely to be noticed and criticized, as in this example: My hair stylist had their car stolen. Even so, use of they, their, and them is increasingly found in contexts where the antecedent is a gender-nonconforming individual or one who does not identify as male or female: Tyler indicated their preferences on their application.
And although they may be used as a singular pronoun, they still takes a plural verb, analogous to the use of "you are" to refer to one person: The student brought in a note to show why they were absent. See also he1.
pronoun, possessive their or theirs, objective them.
people in general: They say he's rich.
(used with a singular indefinite pronoun or singular noun 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. A person may apply only if they are over 21. They have been an actor since childhood.
Origin of they
1150–1200; Middle English < Old Norse
their they (replacing Old English
hī(e)); cognate with Old English
thā, plural of
thæt
that
British Dictionary definitions for their (1 of 11)
their
/ (ðɛə) /
determiner
of, belonging to, or associated in some way with them
their finest hour; their own clothes; she tried to combat their mocking her
belonging to or associated in some way with people in general not including the speaker or people addressed
in many countries they wash their clothes in the river
belonging to or associated in some way with an indefinite antecedent such as one, whoever, or anybody
everyone should bring their own lunch
Word Origin for their
C12: from Old Norse
theira (genitive plural); see
they,
them
undefined their
See
they
British Dictionary definitions for their (2 of 11)
He
the chemical symbol for
helium
British Dictionary definitions for their (3 of 11)
HE
abbreviation for
high explosive
His Eminence
His (or Her) Excellency
British Dictionary definitions for their (4 of 11)
IT
abbreviation for
information technology
British Dictionary definitions for their (5 of 11)
she
/ (ʃiː) /
pronoun (subjective)
refers to a female person or animal
she is a doctor; she's a fine mare
refers to things personified as feminine, such as cars, ships, and nations
Australian and NZ an informal word for it 1 (def. 3) she's apples; she'll be right
noun
- a female person or animal
- (in combination)she-cat
Word Origin for she
Old English
sīe, accusative of
sēo, feminine demonstrative pronoun
undefined she
See
me 1
British Dictionary definitions for their (6 of 11)
he
1
/ (hiː, unstressed iː) /
pronoun (subjective)
refers to a male person or animal
he looks interesting; he's a fine stallion
refers to an indefinite antecedent such as one, whoever, or anybody
everybody can do as he likes in this country
refers to a person or animal of unknown or unspecified sex
a member of the party may vote as he sees fit
noun
- a male person or animal
- (in combination)he-goat
- a children's game in which one player chases the others in an attempt to touch one of them, who then becomes the chaserCompare tag 2
- the person chasingCompare it 1 (def. 7)
Word Origin for he
Old English
hē; related to Old Saxon
hie, Old High German
her he, Old Slavonic
sĭ this, Latin
cis on this side
British Dictionary definitions for their (7 of 11)
he
2
/ (heɪ, Hebrew he) /
noun
the fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet (ה), transliterated as h
British Dictionary definitions for their (8 of 11)
he
3
/ (hiː, heɪ) /
interjection
an expression of amusement or derision
Also: he-he!, hee-hee!
British Dictionary definitions for their (9 of 11)
it
1
/ (ɪt) /
pronoun (subjective or objective)
noun
Word Origin for it
Old English
hit
British Dictionary definitions for their (10 of 11)
it
2
the internet domain name for
Italy
British Dictionary definitions for their (11 of 11)
they
/ (ðeɪ) /
pronoun (subjective)
refers to people or things other than the speaker or people addressed
they fight among themselves
refers to unspecified people or people in general not including the speaker or people addressed
in Australia they have Christmas in the summer
not standard
refers to an indefinite antecedent such as one, whoever, or anybody
if anyone objects, they can go
an archaic word for those blessed are they that mourn
Word Origin for they
C12:
thei from Old Norse
their, masculine nominative plural, equivalent to Old English
thā
usage for they
It was formerly considered correct to use
he, him, or
his after pronouns such as
everyone, no-one, anyone, or
someone as in
everyone did his best, but it is now more common to use
they, them, or
their, and this use has become acceptable in all but the most formal contexts:
everyone did their best
Medical definitions for their
He
The symbol for the elementhelium
Scientific definitions for their
He
The symbol for helium.
Idioms and Phrases with their (1 of 2)
it
Idioms and Phrases with their (2 of 2)
they
see bigger they come; let the chips fall where they may.