Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- pronoun You. Used as the nominative second person pronoun.
- pronoun You. Used as the objective second person pronoun.
- definite article. The.
from The Century Dictionary.
- A Middle English form of
yea . - noun An obsolete variant of
eye . - The personal pronoun of the second person, in the plural number: now commonly applied also (originally with some notion of distinction or compliment, as in the case of the royal we) to a single individual, in place of the singular forms thee and thou—a use resulting in the partial degradation of thou to a term of familiarity or of contempt. Ye is archaic, and little used except in exalted address and poetry.
- As used without discrimination of case-form between nominative and objective.
- As used for a single subject.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- an old method of printing the article
the (AS. þe), the “y” being used in place of the Anglo-Saxon thorn (þ). It is sometimes incorrectly pronounced yē. Seethe , andthorn , n., 4. - noun obsolete An eye.
- adverb obsolete Yea; yes.
- pronoun The plural of the pronoun of the second person in the nominative case.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- pronoun dialectal, Northern England, Cornish
you (the people being addressed). - verb obsolete
Address asingle person by the use of thepronoun ye instead ofthou . - determiner, article archaic, definite
the
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Weel, if ye dinna ken that, said the resolute farmer, ye ken this; ye ken yere whiles obliged to be up our water in the way o your business; now, if ye let me stay quietly here the night wi the Captain, Ise pay ye double fees for the room; and if ye say no, ye shall hae the best sark-fu o sair banes that ever ye had in your life, the first time ye set a foot by Liddel-moat!
Chapter XLV 1917
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_Obey ye your rulers, or governors_, Heb.xiii. 17; where the words _obey ye_ doth not
The Divine Right of Church Government by Sundry Ministers Of Christ Within The City Of London
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"_Whatsoever_ ye would that men should do to you, do _ye even so to them_."
The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Part 1 of 4 American Anti-Slavery Society
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In the second Súra Abu 'Umr reads: "Nor shall ye be questioned concerning that which _they_ have done;" but' Ásim reads: "That which _ye_ have done."
The Faith of Islam Edward Sell
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"_Whatsoever_ ye would that men should do to you, do _ye even so to them_."
The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Part 1 of 4 American Anti-Slavery Society
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Ye mustn't do that agin, sonny; ye must come whether ye've money or no; times is hard, but, I swear, I kin give _ye_ a loaf any time. '
The Continental Monthly, Vol. 2, No 3, September, 1862 Devoted to Literature and National Policy. Various
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"When ye were encamped on the near side of the valley, and they were on the further side, and the caravan was below you, if ye have made an engagement to _attack_, ye would assuredly have failed the engagement; but _ye were led into action notwithstanding_, that God might accomplish the thing _destined_ to be done."
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"_Whatsoever_ ye would that men should do to you, do _ye even so to them_."
The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Omnibus American Anti-Slavery Society
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I want ter show ye she's sound's a nut -- _ye won't pay my price ef I doan't_.
The Continental Monthly , Vol. 2 No. 5, November 1862 Devoted to Literature and National Policy Various
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"_Whatsoever_ ye would that men should do to you, do _ye even so to them_."
The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Omnibus American Anti-Slavery Society
kewpid commented on the word ye
This is (was?) actually pronounced 'the'.
November 10, 2007
uselessness commented on the word ye
That's pretty wild. Source?
November 13, 2007
reesetee commented on the word ye
True, uselessness. "Archaic The. Misreading of ye, from Middle English þe, spelling of the, (using the letter thorn)."
Also of "you": "Archaic, used nominatively as the plural of thou, esp. in rhetorical, didactic, or poetic contexts, in addressing a group of persons or things): O ye of little faith; ye brooks and hills." And... "Used nominatively for the second person singular, esp. in polite address: Do ye not know me?"
Interesting little word, ye. :-)
November 13, 2007
Eoin commented on the word ye
In Cork, Ireland, the word "ye" is in common use as the plural of "you." Although it's recognised as not belonging to standard modern English, it is entirely normal to use it in conversation and, in fact, if the word "you" is used as a plural it may cause momentary confusion. I have seen the written form of the word in hand-written notes, letters etc but never in print. I believe this usage may be found in most/all parts of the country but may be less common in other areas.
August 10, 2009
jodi commented on the word ye
IrE: you (plural). AmE dialects have: y'all, yiz, youse, you guys -- but there's no exact non-dialect equivalent.
April 19, 2011