we
EnglishEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Middle English we, from Old English wē (“we”), from Proto-West Germanic *wiʀ, from Proto-Germanic *wīz, *wiz (“we”), from Proto-Indo-European *wéy (“we (plural)”).
Cognate with Scots wee, we (“we”), North Frisian we (“we”), West Frisian wy (“we”), Low German wi (“we”), Dutch we, wij (“we”), German wir (“we”), Danish, Swedish and Norwegian vi (“we”), Icelandic vér, við (“we”), Avestan 𐬬𐬀𐬉𐬨 (vaēm), Sanskrit वयम् (vayám).
PronunciationEdit
- enPR: wē, IPA(key): /wiː/
- (General American) IPA(key): /wi/
Audio (US) (file) Audio (UK) (file) Audio (file) - Homophones: oui, wee, whee (in accents with the wine-whine merger), Wii
- Rhymes: -iː
PronounEdit
we (first-person plural nominative case, objective case us, possessive determiner our, possessive pronoun ours, reflexive ourselves, reflexive singular ourself)
- (personal) The speakers/writers, or the speaker/writer and at least one other person (not the person being addressed). (This is the exclusive we.)
- 2017 February 20, Paul Mason, “Climate scepticism is a far-right badge of honour – even in sweltering Australia”, in the Guardian[1]:
- It’s time to overcome queasiness and restraint. We, the liberal and progressive people of the world, are at war with the far right to save the earth.
- (personal) The speaker(s)/writer(s) and the person(s) being addressed. (This is the inclusive we.)
- (personal) The institution upon which the speaker/writer is acting. (This is the editorial we, used by writers and others when speaking with the authority of their publication or organisation.)
- 2021, Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, “Paper No. CMAB C4/9/1”, in Documents of the Hong Kong Legislative Council[2], page 1:
- In light of the promulgation of the aforementioned laws and decisions, we (the administration) propose to make the following amendments to local legislation to implement the relevant requirements on oath taking by public officers.
- (personal, royal) The sovereign alone in their capacity as monarch. (This is the royal we. The reflexive case of this sense of we is ourself.)
- (personal) The plural form of you, including everyone being addressed.
- 2013 July-August, Stephen P. Lownie, David M. Pelz, “Stents to Prevent Stroke”, in American Scientist:
- As we age, the major arteries of our bodies frequently become thickened with plaque, a fatty material with an oatmeal-like consistency that builds up along the inner lining of blood vessels.
- How are we all tonight?
- (personal, often considered patronising) A second- or third-person pronoun for a person in the speaker's care.
- 2008 May 13, Tom Armstrong, Marvin (comic):
- Are we ready to go to bed, sweetie?
- How are we feeling this morning?
- (proscribed) The speaker or writer, used to imply connection between the speaker's experiences and a group of listeners.
- 2021 January 6, Rally on Electoral College Vote Certification[3], Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN), spoken by Donald Trump, 3:38:03 from the start:
- All Vice President [Mike] Pence has to do is send it back to the states to recertify and we become president and you are the happiest people.
- 2021 June 24, “Far from Home”, in Alone[4], season 9, episode 4, HISTORY Channel, spoken by Theresa Emmerich Kamper, 3:07 from the start:
- [Today is] not a day to think about fishing so we will get back to working on the shelter. [cut in video] Cool, so I guess the best analogy for this, then, is that we've basically framed the house, and now we get to shingle.
- 2022 October 25, Joseph Camp, director, PBS NewsHour[5], Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), archived from the original on 2022-10-25, spoken by John Fetterman, 32:11 from the start, Vote 2022:
- The elephant in the room, you know, we had a stroke back in May.
- Hey guys, how's it going? Today we are going to be playing a new game.
Derived termsEdit
DescendantsEdit
TranslationsEdit
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DeterminerEdit
we
- The speakers/writers, or the speaker/writer and at least one other person.
- We Canadians like to think of ourselves as different.
Etymology 2Edit
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
PronunciationEdit
PronounEdit
we
- (Tyneside) Us.
- He was a propa gadgie, and always bought we drinks after a long shift.
- And what have you done for we since? Nowt!
Usage notesEdit
Not to be confused with Tyneside us (“me”).
AnagramsEdit
AbinomnEdit
NounEdit
ReferencesEdit
- Newguineaworld, citing Donohue and Musgrave, Abinomn nominal number (2007: 365)
AnguthimriEdit
NounEdit
we
- (Mpakwithi) owl
ReferencesEdit
- Terry Crowley, The Mpakwithi dialect of Anguthimri (1981), page 189
CaacEdit
DeterminerEdit
we
- water
- kô-ny we
- 'my (glass/drink of) water'
- kô-ny we
ReferencesEdit
Cameroon PidginEdit
Alternative formsEdit
EtymologyEdit
PronunciationEdit
PronounEdit
we
See alsoEdit
DeterminerEdit
we
- our, 1st person plural possessive determiner
See alsoEdit
ChuukeseEdit
DeterminerEdit
we (plural kewe)
- (possessive subject marker) the (singular)
DadibiEdit
NounEdit
wẹ
SynonymsEdit
ReferencesEdit
- Karl J. Franklin, Comparative Wordlist 1 of the Gulf District and adjacent areas (1975), page 67
- Karl James Franklin, Pacific Linguistics (1973, →ISBN, page 130: Polopa so/sou woman, cf. DAR sou female animal but we woman. Several multiple cognate sets appeared in the data. Daribi uses both ạị and wẹ for water; some Polopa speakers gave one term, some another. Both are probably known everywhere.
DutchEdit
EtymologyEdit
See wij.
PronunciationEdit
PronounEdit
we (personal pronoun)
InflectionEdit
subject | object | possessive | reflexive | genitive5 | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
singular | full | unstr. | full | unstr. | full | unstr. | pred. | ||
1st person | ik | 'k1 | mij | me | mijn | m'n1 | mijne | me | mijner, mijns |
2nd person | jij | je | jou | je | jouw | je | jouwe | je | jouwer, jouws |
2nd person archaic or regiolectal | gij | ge | u | – | uw | – | uwe | u | uwer, uws |
2nd person formal | u | – | u | – | uw | – | uwe | zich | uwer, uws |
3rd person masculine | hij | ie1 | hem | 'm1 | zijn | z'n1 | zijne | zich | zijner, zijns |
3rd person feminine | zij | ze | haar | h'r1, 'r1, d'r1 | haar | h'r1, 'r1, d'r1 | hare | zich | harer, haars |
3rd person neuter | het | 't1 | het | 't1 | zijn | z'n1 | zijne | zich | zijner, zijns |
plural | |||||||||
1st person | wij | we | ons | – | ons, onze2 | – | onze | ons | onzer, onzes |
2nd person | jullie | je | jullie | je | jullie | je | – | je | – |
2nd person archaic or regiolectal6 | gij | ge | u | – | uw | – | uwe | u | uwer, uws |
2nd person formal | u | – | u | – | uw | – | uwe | zich | uwer, uws |
3rd person | zij | ze | hen3, hun4 | ze | hun | – | hunne | zich | hunner, huns |
1) Not as common in written language. 2) Inflected as an adjective. 3) In prescriptivist use, used only as direct object (accusative). 4) In prescriptivist use, used only as indirect object (dative). |
5) Archaic. Nowadays used for formal, literary or poetic purposes, and in fixed expressions. 6) To differentiate from the singular gij, and in a similar vein to "you lot" or "you guys" in English, it is common to use gijlui ("you people") or gijlieden ("you people") or one of their contracted variants, and their corresponding objects, possessives and reflexives, in the plural. |
SynonymsEdit
DescendantsEdit
- Jersey Dutch: wê
See alsoEdit
FijianEdit
NounEdit
we
FwâiEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- André-Georges Haudricourt, Françoise Ozanne-Rivierre, Dictionnaire thématique des langues de la région de Hienghène (1982)
GaloliEdit
NounEdit
we
- (Talur) water
ReferencesEdit
- Bryan Hinton, The languages of Wetar, in Spices from the east: Papers in languages of eastern Indonesia (2000), page 121
HaekeEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- Jean Claude Rivierre, Sabine Ehrhart, Raymond Diéla, Le Bwatoo: et les dialectes de la région de Koné (2006)
HavekeEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- Jean Claude Rivierre, Sabine Ehrhart, Raymond Diéla, Le Bwatoo: et les dialectes de la région de Koné (2006)
HmwavekeEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
ReferencesEdit
- Leenhardt, M. (1946) Langues et dialectes de l'Austro-Mèlanèsie. Cited in: "ʰMoavekɛ" in Greenhill, S.J., Blust, R., & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271-283.
IdoEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we (plural we-i)
- The name of the Latin script letter W/w.
See alsoEdit
JapaneseEdit
RomanizationEdit
we
JaweEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- André-Georges Haudricourt, Françoise Ozanne-Rivierre, Dictionnaire thématique des langues de la région de Hienghène (1982)
KikuyuEdit
Etymology 1Edit
PronunciationEdit
PronounEdit
we (second person singular)
Related termsEdit
- -aku (“your, thy”)
Etymology 2Edit
PronunciationEdit
PronounEdit
we (third person singular)
Related termsEdit
- -ake (“his/her”)
See alsoEdit
singular | plural | |
---|---|---|
1st person | niĩ | ithuĩ |
2nd person | we /wɛ(ː)/ | inyuĩ |
3rd person | we /wɛ/ | o |
ReferencesEdit
- “we” in Benson, T.G. (1964). Kikuyu-English dictionary, p. 561. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
LaboyaEdit
NounEdit
we
ReferencesEdit
- Greenhill, S. J.; Blust. R; Gray, R. D. (2008), “The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics”, in Evolutionary Bioinformatics[6], issue 4, archived from the original on 2017-04-18, pages 271-283
- Laboya in Austronesian Comparative Dictionary
Lower SorbianEdit
PronunciationEdit
PrepositionEdit
we (with locative)
- Alternative form of w (especially before labial consonants and consonant clusters)
MapudungunEdit
AdjectiveEdit
we (Raguileo spelling)
ReferencesEdit
- Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.
Middle EnglishEdit
Etymology 1Edit
from Old English wē (“we”), from Proto-West Germanic *wiʀ, from Proto-Germanic *wīz, *wiz (“we”), from Proto-Indo-European *wéy (“we (plural)”). Compare wit (first person dual pronoun).
Alternative formsEdit
PronunciationEdit
PronounEdit
we (accusative us, we, genitive oure, possessive determiner oures)
DescendantsEdit
See alsoEdit
nominative | accusative | dative | genitive | possessive | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
singular | 1st-person | I, ich, ik | me | min mi1 |
min | ||
2nd-person | þou | þe | þin þi1 |
þin | |||
3rd-person | m | he | him hine2 |
him | his | his hisen | |
f | sche, heo | hire heo |
hire | hire hires, hiren | |||
n | hit | hit him2 |
his, hit | — | |||
dual3 | 1st-person | wit | unk | unker | |||
2nd-person | ȝit | inc | inker | ||||
plural | 1st-person | we | us, ous | oure | oure oures, ouren | ||
2nd-person4 | ye | yow | your | your youres, youren | |||
3rd-person | inh. | he | hem he2 |
hem | here | here heres, heren | |
bor. | þei | þem, þeim | þeir | þeir þeires, þeiren |
1Used preconsonantally or before h.
2Early or dialectal.
3Dual pronouns are only sporadically found in Early Middle English; after that, they are replaced by plural forms. There are no third-person dual forms in Middle English.
4Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.
ReferencesEdit
- “we, pron.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 10 May 2018.
Etymology 2Edit
From Old English wēa, from Proto-Germanic *waiwô. Doublet of wowe.
Alternative formsEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we (uncountable)
ReferencesEdit
- “wẹ̄, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-12-30.
Middle Low GermanEdit
PronunciationEdit
- Certainly: Stem vowel: ê⁴
Etymology 1Edit
From Old Saxon hwē, from Proto-West Germanic *hwaʀ, from Proto-Germanic *hwaz.
PronounEdit
wê (accusative wēne or wen, dative wēme or wem, genitive wes)
Etymology 2Edit
From Proto-Germanic *wiz.
PronounEdit
wê
NedebangEdit
NounEdit
we
ReferencesEdit
- Gary Holton and Laura Robinson, The Internal History of the Alor-Pantar language family, in The Alor-Pantar languages: History and Typology, edited by Marian Klamer
- transnewguinea.org (wæ), ASJP 1 (wE i.e. wɛ), ASJP 2 (we)
NemiEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- André-Georges Haudricourt, Françoise Ozanne-Rivierre, Dictionnaire thématique des langues de la région de Hienghène (1982)
North AmbrymEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
Further readingEdit
- Darrell T. Tryon, New Hebrides languages: an internal classification (1976)
- George William Grace, The position of the Polynesian languages within the Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian) language family (1959)
NyâlayuEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- Jim Hollyman, K. J. Hollyman, Études sur les langues du Nord de la Nouvelle-Calédonie (1991), page 81
Old EnglishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
- wæ
- ƿē
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Germanic *wiz, *wīz, from Proto-Indo-European *wéy, plural of *éǵh₂.
Cognate with Old Frisian wī (West Frisian wy), Old Saxon wī (Low German wi), Old Dutch wī (Dutch wij), Old High German wir (German wir), Old Norse vér (Danish and Swedish vi), Gothic 𐍅𐌴𐌹𐍃 (weis).
PronunciationEdit
PronounEdit
wē (personal pronoun)
- we (nominative plural of iċ)
DescendantsEdit
PijeEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- André-Georges Haudricourt, Françoise Ozanne-Rivierre, Dictionnaire thématique des langues de la région de Hienghène (1982)
PolishEdit
EtymologyEdit
Inherited from Proto-Slavic *vъ(n), from Proto-Indo-European *én.
PronunciationEdit
PrepositionEdit
we (used instead of w mostly before words that begin with consonant clusters)
Further readingEdit
SpanishEdit
EtymologyEdit
Variant of güey, representing the relaxed pronunciation of the /gw/ sounds and in some cases loss of the /i/ sound.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we m or f (plural wees)
Tocharian AEdit
Previous: | sas |
---|---|
Next: | tre |
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁. Compare Tocharian B wi.
NumeralEdit
we f
Related termsEdit
Tok PisinEdit
EtymologyEdit
AdverbEdit
we
TurkmenEdit
Etymology 1Edit
Borrowed from Persian وَ (va).
ConjunctionEdit
we
Etymology 2Edit
NounEdit
we (definite accusative [[{{{1}}}#Turkmen|?]], plural [[{{{2}}}#Turkmen|?]])
- The name of the Latin-script letter W/w.
UyghurEdit
NounEdit
we
- Latin (ULY) transcription of ۋە (we)
VamaleEdit
NounEdit
we
ReferencesEdit
- Greenhill, S.J., Blust. R, & Gray, R.D. (2008). The Austronesian Basic Vocabulary Database: From Bioinformatics to Lexomics. Evolutionary Bioinformatics, 4:271-283.
WelshEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we
- Soft mutation of gwe.
MutationEdit
Welsh mutation | |||
---|---|---|---|
radical | soft | nasal | aspirate |
gwe | we | ngwe | unchanged |
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs. |
West MakianEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we
ReferencesEdit
- Clemens Voorhoeve (1982) The Makian languages and their neighbours[7], Pacific linguistics
YolaEdit
PronounEdit
we
- Alternative form of wough
- 1867, CONGRATULATORY ADDRESS IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, line 8:
- and whilke we canna zei, albeit o' 'Governere,' 'Statesman,' an alike.
- and for which we have no words but of 'Governor,' 'Statesman,' &c.
- 1867, CONGRATULATORY ADDRESS IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, line 21:
- Ye pace——yea, we mai zei,
- The peace——yes, we may say
ReferencesEdit
- Jacob Poole (1867), William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, page 114
YuagaEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Oceanic *waiʀ, from Proto-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Central-Eastern Malayo-Polynesian *waiʀ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *wahiʀ.
NounEdit
we
- water (clear liquid H₂O)
ReferencesEdit
- Jim Hollyman, K. J. Hollyman, Études sur les langues du Nord de la Nouvelle-Calédonie (1999), page 81
ZaghawaEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
we
NumeralEdit
we
ReferencesEdit
- Beria-English English-Beria Dictionary [provisional] ADESK, Iriba, Kobe Department, Chad
ZuluEdit
PronounEdit
-we
- Combining stem of wena.